THE 

CALL 

OF 

CATHAY 

M 

: WA.CORNABY 

it 

BV  3415  .C7  1910 
Cornaby,  W.  Arthur  1860- 
1921. 

The  call  of  Cathay 


T 


THE  CALL  OF  CATHAY 


I Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
p in  2017  with  funding  from 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


https://archive.org/details/callofcathaystudOOcorn 


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■ • 


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CHINESE  PEEACHER  RECEIVING  AN  INQUIRER  IN  A GUEST-ROOM. 


THE 


Call  of  Cathay 


A STUDY  IN  MISSIONARY  WORK  AND 
OPPORTUNITY  IN  CHINA  OLD  AND  NEW 


REV. 


W. 


A.  CORNABY 


WITH  CHAPTERS  BY 

Rev.  S.  GEORGE  TOPE 
Rev.  GEORGE  A.  CLAYTON 
Rev.  ERNEST  C.  COOPER 


W.M.M.S.  CENTENARY  SERIES 


LONDON 

THE  WESLEYAN  METHODIST  MISSIONARY  SOCIETY 
17  BISHOPSGATE  STREET  WITHIN,  E.C. 

1910 


PRINTED  AND  BOUND  BY 
HAZELL,  WATSON  AND  VINEV,  LD. 
LONDON  AND  AYLESBURY. 


PREFACE 


An  important  part  of  our  Centenary 
Movement  will  be  to  foster  missionary 
study  throughout  the  Methodist  Church, 
and  particularly  among  young  people. 
To  this  end  it  has  been  decided  to  issue 
a series  of  Centenary  Text-Books  for 
the  use  of  Missionary  Study  Circles  ; and 
this  volume  is  the  first  of  that  series. 
It  has  been  written  with  the  needs  of 
Study  Circles  in  view,  the  general  scheme 
of  chapters  and  method  of  treatment 
conforming  to  the  principles  which  have 
been  tested  and  approved  in  the  larger 
Study  Circle  Movement.  The  Committee 
is  deeply  indebted  to  Mr.  Cornaby  and 
his  fellow  missionaries,  Messrs.  Tope, 
Clayton,  and  Cooper,  for  their  ready 
response  to  its  request,  and  for  the 
ability  and  devotion  with  which  they 
have  discharged  the  task  undertaken. 


VI 


Preface 


Owing  to  residence  in  China,  Mr. 
Cornaby  and  his  co-writers  have  been 
unable  to  see  the  proof-sheets,  and  the 
final  revision  has  of  necessity  been  done 
at  the  Mission  House.  In  view  of  the 
special  purpose  of  the  book  a few  minor 
alterations  have  been  made,  and  some 
notes  and  appendices  added,  for  which 
the  writers  are  not  responsible. 

Wii.LiAM  Goudie, 

Centenary  Secretary. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Preface v 

Introdijction,  by  the  Rev.  Chas.  Wenyon, 

M.D xiii 

A Note  oit  Pronuj^ciation’  of  Chinese 

Words  ......  xvii 

CHAP. 

I.  The  Chinese  People  ....  1 

Their  history,  and  religious  and  national 
characteristics. 

II.  The  Story  of  Early  Missionary 

Work 40 

Nestorian,  Latin,  and  Jesuit  missions,  and 
their  lessons. 

III.  Protestant  Missions  in  China  . . 73 

Morrison  and  the  century  following ; 
difficulties,  opposition,  progress,  and 
prospects. 

IV.  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missions  in 

South  China,  by  the  Rev.  S.  George 
Tope . 114 

The  region;  missionary  methods;  members; 
outsiders ; comrades  in  the  work, 
vii 


viii  Contents 

CHAP. 

V.  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missions  in 

Hupeh,  by  the  Rev.  George  A. 
Clayton  . . ... 

History  of  the  Hupeh  District. 

VI.  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missions  in 

Hunan,  by  the  Rev.  Ernest  C. 
Cooper  ...... 

The  province,  its  characteristics,  diffi- 
culties ; a foothold  gained,  our  cir- 
cuits ; some  Hunanese  Cliristians. 

VII.  New  China  and  its  Problems 

China’s  arousal,  its  causes  and  char- 
acteristics. 

VIII.  The  Call  of  the  Hour  . 

The  great  issues  at  stake,  and  what 
must  be  done. 

APPENDICES 

A.  Tabular  View  of  the  Chinese  Empire 

B.  The  European  Staff  of  W.M.M.S.  China 

Missions 

C.  The  Other  Methodist  Missions  in  China 


PAGE 

151 

196 

236 

269 

297 

298 
304 


Bibliography  . 
Index 


. 309 

. 313 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


A Chinese  Preacher  Receivino  an  Inquirer 

Frontispiece 

FACING  PAGE 

Pavilion  and  Lotus  Lake  in  Palace  Garden  4 
Shrine  to  “ Daddy  and  Granny  ” . .25 

One  of  the  Judges  in  a Taoist  Temple  . 25 

Tama’s  Hall  of  Judgment  . . . .33 

The  Laughing  Buddha  .....  33 

A County  Magistrate  . . . . .34 

The  Nestorian  Tablet 42 

Group  in  Courtyard  of  Buddhist  Temple  . 58 

Robert  Morrison 73 

Chinese  Gospels 105 

Selling  Gospels  in  China  . . . .105 

Material  for  Women’s  Work  . . .108 

A Wayside  Tea-house  in  Kwangtung  . 114 

Rapids  near  Yingtock  . . . . .114 

George  Piercy  . . . . . .116 

JosiAH  Cox  . . . . . . .116 

WucHOw  Hospital  . . . . . .121 

Dr.  Webb  Anderson  and  Students  . . 121 

Medical  Students  Learning  to  Dispense  . 123 

‘The  Waiting-room,  Women’s  Hospital, 

Hankow  .......  123 

A'  River-bank  Scene  in  Summer  . . .126 


IX 


X 


List  of  Illustrations 


FACING  PAGE 

Chapel  at  Uppeh  Craigs  . . . .129 

Christiaxs  at  Lok  Chexg  . . . .129 

The  Late  Empress-Dowager  . . .140 

Shipping  Tea,  Hankow  . . . . .151 

The  First  Protestant  Convert  in  Central 

China 159 

Hankow  Men’s  Hospital  . . . .173 

The  “ David  Hill  ” Blind  School  . . 179 
David  Hill  .......  182 

Dr.  Hodge  Performing  an  Operation  . 189 

Dr.  Ethel  Rowley  and  Chinese  Nurses  . 191 

A Chinese  River  Gunboat  . . . .196 

Changsha  Mission  Houses  after  the  Riot  214 
Wesleyan  Church,  Yungchowfu  . . . 224 

A Chinese  Street  ......  224 

The  Rev.  Lo  Yu-shan  .....  232 

H.E.  Chang  Chih-tung 236 

The  Old  and  New  Methods  of  Transport  . 241 

Modern  Shanghai .246 

The  Great  Ironworks,  Hanyang  . . 246 

Making  Type  in  a Printing  Establishment  249 
Schoolboys  Taking  a Stroll  . . . 249 

Young  China  .......  254 

How  THE  Poorest  Live.  ....  257 

A Cottage  in  South  China  . . . .257 

A Tablet  to  Confucius  . . . .261 

Needy  China  .......  269 

A Schoolgirl  who  Became  a Nurse  . . 274 

A Schoolboy  who  Became  a Tutor  . .274 

A Chinese  Lady 283 


MAPS 

PAGE 

The  Earliest  Chinese  Settlements  in  China  1 7 
The  Dialects  of  China  . . . .19^ 

Kwangtijng,  to  Show  W.M.M.S.  Stations  . 118 

Hupeh,  to  Show  W.M.M.S.  Stations  . . 153 
Hunan,  to  Show  W.M.M.S.  Stations  . .211 
China  Proper,  to  Show  W.M.M.S.  Fields 

{Double-page  at  end  of  bool'} 


XI 


INTRODUCTION 


The  world  has  hardly  recovered  from 
its  amazement  at  the  sudden  emergence 
of  Japan,  and  the  advance  of  that 
plucky  little  people  almost  at  one  stride 
to  the  front  rank  of  nations,  but  already 
we  see  rising  over  the  verge  another 
and  far  more  formidable  power.  China 
even  in  its  quiescence  was  of  absorbing 
interest,  representing  as  it  did  such 
stupendous  possibilities.  It  covers  a 
vast  and  most  fertile  area  of  the  earth’s 
surface.  Its  mineral  resources  are  of 
incalculable  extent  and  as  yet  almost 
untouched.  It  has  a huge  population, 
not  composite  as  in  most  other  im- 
portant lands,  but  consisting  chiefly 
of  one  homogeneous  black-haired  race. 
The  people  are  of  a high  type-robust, 
practical,  resolute,  resourceful,  and  of 
great  intellectual  power.  There  is  no 
realm  of  knowledge  which  they  have 


Xlll 


XIV 


Introduction 


not  attempted  to  explore,  and  few 
branches  of  literature  to  which  they 
have  not  contributed.  They  have  long 
had  a complex  and  highly  developed 
civilisation,  and  the  social  and  politi- 
cal constitution  of  their  country  is 
one  of  the  most  comprehensive  upon 
earth. 

This  great  empire  has  hitherto  been 
very  remote  from  us,  remote  not  so  much 
by  its  situation  away  in  the  far  east  as 
by  the  strangeness  of  its  ways  and 
language,  and  it  has  been  made  still 
more  remote  by  its  obstinate  refusal  to 
move  with  the  times,  and  by  its  haughty 
and  dogged  aloofness  from  all  other 
peoples  and  all  other  lands. 

But  a new  era  is  now  dawning.  For 
nearly  a century  the  sleep  of  China 
has  been  more  or  less  disturbed,  and  at 
last  she  has  opened  her  eyes  and  begun 
to  bestir  herself.  Already  she  is  calling 
aloud  for  our  Western  inventions  and 
appliances.  Her  students  are  to  be 
seen  in  our  Universities  and  Medical 
Schools.  Her  Government  is  insisting 
upon  having  a voice  in  international 
affairs.  She  is  raising  a great  army  and 


Introduction 


XV 


navy  to  support  her  claims.  Evidently 
she  is  now  wide  awake. 

This  awakening  of  China  is  the  most 
momentous  fact  of  our  age.  It  is  so  to 
the  statesman,  for  such  a colossal  body 
cannot  find  a place  for  itself  in  the 
council  chamber  of  the  world  without  a 
serious  readjustment  of  positions  and 
disturbance  of  the  equilibrium  of  power. 
It  is  still  more  momentous  to  the  Church, 
for  upon  it  rests  the  responsibility  of 
determining  whether  these  changes  shall 
be  a blessing  or  a curse.  With  her 
present  materialistic  fatalism  and  con- 
tempt for  human  life,  China,  frenzied 
by  military  and  political  ambition,  might 
well  become  the  most  awful  scourge 
humanity  has  known.  On  the  other 
hand,  a Christian  China  would  bring 
within  sight,  as  the  conversion  of  no 
other  country  could,  the  conversion  of 
the  world,  and  could  not  fail  to  be  one  of 
the  most  effectual  safeguards  of  universal 
peace  and  good-will. 

The  evangelisation  of  China  is  a 
matter  of  extreme  urgency.  In  its 
present  restlessness  and  thirst  for 
Western  knowledge  the  Church  of  Christ 


xvi  Introduction 

has  an  unprecedented  opportunity  and 
one  which  may  never  come  again.  It 
behoves  the  thoughtful  young  people  of 
the  Church  to  acquaint  themselves  with 
the  facts  of  the  case.  No  part  of  the 
mission  field  will  better  repay  study,  or 
be  of  more  enthralling  interest,  and  we 
are  glad  to  recommend  this  little  book, 
written  by  one  of  the  most  gifted  and 
successful  of  our  missionaries,  as  a clear 
and  fascinating  and  thoroughly  reliable 
introduction  to  the  subject. 

Charles  Wenyon. 


NOTE  ON  THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF 
CHINESE  WORDS 


The  spelling  of  Chinese  words  usual  in  this  book 
(with  the  exception  of  some  spellings  introduced 
early  into  our  language,  as  Canton  for  Kwantung, 
and  Peking  for  Peeking  ; and  Teian — spelt  thus 
for  postal  convenience — for  Te-an,  and  place-names 
spelt  in  accordance  with  the  Imperial  Postage  System) 
is  that  of  Sir  Thomas  Wade.  It  has  been  adopted 
by  Professor  Herbert  A.  Giles  in  his  Chinese-English 
Dictionary  (1892  and  1910),  and  some  pocket  dic- 
tionaries, and  is  now  recognised  as  the  standard  form 
of  Mandarin  romanisation.  As  Professor  Giles  says  : 
“ This  orthography  is  anything  but  scientifically  exact. 
In  some  respects  it  is  cumbersome,  in  others  incon- 
sistent ” — and,  the  reader  will  feel,  often  very  wide 
of  the  mark. 

Only  half  the  initial  consonants  are  pronounced 
as  written — namely,  when  followed  by  an  inverted 
comma,  as  k‘,  p‘,  t‘,  ch‘,  tz‘  ; without  that  comma 
they  are  hardly  more  than  g,  b,  d,  dj,  and  dz.  The 
province  names  of  Kwangtung  and  Kwangsi  are 
practically  Gwandoong  and  Gwangshi,  the  a always 
like  a in  father  ; Hupeh  is  practically  Hoober  ; the 
j)  is  sounded  at  its  full  value  in  hup‘eh,  amber,  but 
there  the  p is  followed  by  an  inverted  comma. 
Wuchang,  being  now  reckoned  as  an  English  word, 
is  written  without  the  comma,  but  is  really  Woot- 
sarng,  and  Changsha  is  properly  Tsarng-sar.  It 
xvii  h 


xviii  Note  on  Pronunciation 

would  hardly  be  guessed  that  the  final  syllable  in 
many  names  chow  is  pronounced  dzd,  but  such  is 
the  case.  Hangchow,  so  often  mistaken  for  Hankow, 
though  700  miles  distant,  is  pronounced  Harng-dzo  ; 
while  Hankow  is  properly  Harn-ko,  the  inventors 
of  the  ow  final  having  in  their  mind  the  word  To 
and  not  the  word  cow.  Lao  Tzu  is  practically  Lao 
Dsz,  the  second  syllable  being  sounded  without  a 
vowel.  Li  Hung-chang  is  pronounced  Lee  Hoongh* 
dzarng.  As  matters  are  so  complicated  it  is  always 
allowable,  out  of  China,  to  pronounce  place-names 
as  written,  but  the  following  table  of  sounds  will  be 
a guide  to  those  who  strive  after  correctness. 

a has  the  sound  of  a in  father.  Example  : the  T‘ang 
Dynasty,  pronounced  tarng. 
e has  the  sound  of  e in  men.  Example  : Tayeh. 
i by  itself  has  the  sound  of  i in  ravine.  Example  : 

lyang,  pronounced  Ee-yarng. 
i followed  by  n or  by  another  vowel,  is  short,  as 
i in  sin.  Example  : Peking,  properly  pro- 
nounced Ber-ging,  with  a trace  of  a p in  the  6. 
ih  is  hardly  pronounced  at  all.  Example  : Chang 
Chih-tung,  pronounced  Dzarng  Ds-doong, 
with  a trace  of  a ^ in  the  last  syllable  ; Hwang 
Shih-kang,  pronounced  Hwarng-sh-garng, 
with  a trace  of  a in  the  g. 
o and  ow  (or  u)  stand  respectively  for  the  first 
two  o’s  in  Loch  Lomond,  the  first  short,  the 
second  long.  Example  ; Lo  Yu-shan,  pro- 
nounced Lo  Y6-san ; Yang-lo,  short  o ; 
Anlu,  the  u sounded  as  a long  o. 
u has  often  the  sound  of  oo  in  hoot.  Example  ; 

Hupeh,  pronounced  Hoober  ; Hunan,  pro- 
nounced Hoonan  ; Ruling,  a summer  resort, 
Goo-ling. 


of  Chinese  Words  xix 

ii  has  the  sound  of  u in  the  French  elu. 
ai  has  the  sound  of  i in  ice.  Example  : Shanghai, 
ao  has  the  sound  of  ow  in  cow.  Example  : Tao  (dow) 
and  Taoism. 

ei  has  the  sound  of  the  Italian  ei,  or  the  English  ey 
in  they.  Example  : Wei-hai-wei  (Way-high- 
way), the  “ inlet  of  the  majestic  sea.” 
ui  has  the  sound  of  ui  in  the  German  pfui,  or  ooay 
made  into  a dipthong.  Example  -.  Suichow 
(or  Suichou — the  final  uov  w being  optional), 
prononced  Sooay-dzo  in  the  Hupeh  dialect. 

Recapitulation. — Some  names  mentioned  in  the 
book : 

Changsha  — Tsarng-sar.  Chenchow  — Tsen-dzo. 
Chang  Chih-tung™ Dzarng  Dz-doong.  Chang  Yih-tzs 
— Dzarng  Ee-dzs.  Fa  Hsien — Far  Shen.  Han  Ming 
Ti — Ham  Ming  Dee.  Wu  Ti^ — Woo  Dee.  Kiao- 
chow — Djao-dzo.  Lao  Tsu — Lao  Dsz.  Shih  Hu — 
Sz  Hoo.  T‘ang  T‘ai  Tsung — Tarng  Tie  Dzoong. 
Wu  T‘ing-fang— Woo  Ting-farng. 


Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary  Society, 


PLEASE  NOTE. 

This  book  has  been  prepared  for  use  in  Missionary  Study 
Circles,  and  for  this  purpose  Study  Problems  and  Assign- 
ments have  been  suggested  at  the  end  of  each  chapter;  a 
special  pamphlet,  “ Hints  for  Leaders,”  has  also  been 
published  to  accompany  “ The  Call  of  Cathay.”  The 
Centenary  Committee  urges  all  leaders  of  Study  Circles  to 
make  use  of  these  “ Hints.”  (May  be  obtained  from  the 
Mission  Study  Department,  W.M.M.S.,  price  Sd.) 


THE 


CALL  OF  CATHAY 

CHAPTER  I 

THE  CHINESE  PEOPLE 

A VERY  early  reference  to  China  in  Early  English 
English  literature  is  that  of  Shakespeare  : Chma, 

“ I would  not  believe  such  a Cataian,  though  the 
priest  o’  the  town  commended  him  for  a true  man.” 

Merry  WiveSy  IT.  i. 

On  which  an  old  commentary  says  : 

‘‘  The  Chinese,  or  sharpers,  were  called 
Catalans.”  A rather  hasty  generalisa- 
tion as  regards  the  character  of  a 
quarter  of  the  human  race  ! But  such 
4 4 are  dark,”  and  dress  and 

hair-fashions  that  were  peculiar,  have 
been  the  chief  items  which  the  word 
''  Chinese  ” has  called  up,  from  Shake- 
speare’s day  until  comparatively  recent 


2 The  Call  of  Cathay 

years,  among  the  populace  of  Western 
nations.  Otherwise,  except  at  tea- 
taking, that  land  has  been  so  remote 
from  our  popular  consciousness  that 
Walpoles  has  a story  of  the  Duchess  of 
Kingston,  who,  on  being  told  that  the 
end  of  the  world  was  approaching, 
declared  that  she  would  certainly  start 
for  China  without  delay  ! 

China's  Early  Other  hand,  the  Chinese,  from 

Impressions  of  1545  onwards,  have  regarded  the  re- 

Nations.  maining  three-quarters  of  humanity  as 
“ ocean  demons  ” (often  roughly  trans- 
lated ‘‘  foreign  devils  ”),  originally 
meaning  “ pirates,”  and  not  without 
cause,  for  in  Sir  Rutherford  Allcock’s 
Parliamentary  Papers  it  is  shown  that 
from  that  date,  for  two  centuries  at 
least,  China’s  acquaintance  with  the 
Far  West  was  chiefly  with  European 
pirate  marauders  who  ravaged  her 
coasts.  A fact  this,  so  deeply  engraved 
on  the  national  consciousness,  that 
missionaries  and  merchants  of  our  own 
generation  have  often  had  to  suffer 
from  wild  suspicions,  which  the  intro- 
duction of  opium  has  served  to  intensify. 
Truly  the  sins  of  one  generation  are 


3 


The  Chinese  People 

visited  upon  those  whieh  sueceed  ; and 
the  blaek  stain  of  opprobrium  is  hard 
to  wash  white  again  ! But  as  now  our 
missionaries  in  China,  by  soeial  inter- 
eourse,  by  Gospel-preaching,  by  the 
instruction  of  the  young,  by  literature 
for  adults,  and  by  the  beautiful  art  and 
ministry  of  healing  for  China’s  sick  folk, 
are  clearing  up  misapprehensions,  bring- 
ing the  best  from  the  West  to  bear  upon 
mind  and  body  and  heart,  and  the  best 
from  heaven  itself  to  bear  on  the  soul 
of  a nation,  it  is  only  fitting  that  we  of 
the  West  should  seek  to  bring  China 
into  focus,  in  her  past  and  present,  and 
in  her  future  outlook. 

In  the  Chinese  nation  we  have  one 
whose  unbroken  records  go  back  more 
than  two  millenniums  b.c.  ; whose 
national  life  has  been  as  real  and  event- 
ful as  that  of  hoary  Chaldea,  Babylon, 
Assyria,  or  Egypt,  Greece  and  Rome  ; 
whose  ancient  literature  is  as  copious 
as  that  of  classical  lands  ; whose  phil- 
osophers have  pondered  deeply  the  facts 
of  human  life  and  duty  ; whose  poets 
have  been  inspired  to  true  poesy ; 
whose  literary  stylists  have  perhaps 


Missionaries 
as  Interpreters 
of  the  West. 


A Nation  with 
Great  Past. 


China  Worth 
Winning— 


— and  There- 
fore Worth 
Studying, 


4 The  Call  of  Cathay 

excelled  those  of  all  other  ancient  lands  ; 
whose  rulers  and  statesmen  have 
grappled  with  vital  problems  of  govern- 
ment ; whose  warriors  have  fought 
with  heroism ; whose  populace,  all 
through  the  ages,  has  been  composed 
of  living  beings,  with  hopes  and  fears, 
and  loves  and  hatreds,  and  daily  anxie- 
ties, quite  as  real  as  our  own,  and^from 
whose  numbers  there  have  at  last 
arisen  here  and  there,  Christian  souls 
and  characters,  of  exceeding  earnestness 
and  beauty.  China,  the  proud  land  of 
aesthetic  traditions,  the  land  of  poesy  and 
pathos,  as  well  as  of  vast  stretches  of 
squalor — physical,  mental,  and  moral  : 
China  is  a land  worth  our  fullest  recog- 
nition, and  worth  the  utmost  energies 
of  a Church  of  prayer-warriors,  worth 
winning  for  the  Highest ; and  capable 
of  becoming  in  time,  by  the  grace  of 
God,  what  som^e  of  its  sons  and  daughters 
have  already  become — gloriously  Chris- 
tian. 

Such  a land,  in  its  far  antiquity, 
its  vicissitudes  of  dynastic  upheaval, 
its  literary  tastes  and  scholarship,  its 
popular  feeling  and  outlook,  together 


PAVILION  AND  LOTUS  LAKE  IN  A CHINESE  PALACE  GARDEN. 


The  Chinese  People  5 

with  its  recent  arousal  to  modern  con- 
ditions, is  well  worth  our  respect  and 
careful  consideration.  And  so  we  may 
well  brace  ourselves  to  study  the  past 
of  this  nation,  for  the  broadening  of 
our  sympathies,  and  for  our  enlighten- 
ment as  to  the  possibilities  that  lie  before 
this  important  section  of  the  race,  a 
nation  that  lies  remote  indeed  from  our 
ken,  but  not  surely  from  the  compassions 
of  the  Redeemer.  In  the  love  that  He 
Himself  lends  us,  let  us  try  to  under- 
stand China,  as  we  read  about  her  from 
all  sources,  that  so  we  may,  by  prayer 
and  supplication,  lead  China  to  know 
her  God  ; lest  from  our  lack  of  sym-  China's  Danger, 
pathetic  knowledge,  and  of  intelligent 
intercession,  this  nation  of  vast  possi- 
bilities mistakes  the  outward  trappings 
of  modern  civilisation  for  heart-culture  ; 
adopting  the  vices  of  the  West  rather 
than  its  virtues  ; putting  anti-foreign- 
ness  in  the  place  of  patriotism,  and 
militarism  in  the  place  of  pacific  develop- 
ment ; and  barren  materialism  in  the 
place  of  vital  godliness,  when  her  gods 
and  superstitions  shall  have  faded 
away. 


An  Ancient 
Utterance. 


Chinese  Ideas 
of  Creation. 


6 The  Call  of  Cathay 

“ Great  is  God  ! In  His  majestic  rulership  re- 
garding this  lower  world,  surveying  all  regions, 
seeking  the  repose  of  the  populace.” 

It  was  no  shallow  thinker  who  penned 
these  words  in  the  twelfth  eentury  b.c., 
— penned  them,  perhaps  by  a graving 
tool  on  bamboo  slips,  to  be  eollated  by 
Confueius  (551-479  B.c.),  and  quoted 
for  eenturies,  until  they  beeame  re- 
vivified in  the  light  of  Gospel  dawn. 
Here  is  an  utterance  from  the  ancient 
religion  of  China,  as  much  earlier  than 
Confucius  as  he  was  earlier  than  our 
own  era.  What  was  the  earliest  history 
of  a nation  from  whence  came  this  en- 
lightened utterance  ? 

The  standard  Chinese  history  books 
begin  with  the  Creation,  or  what  is 
represented  as  the  Incubation  of  the 
universe.  For  although  the  ancient 
Odes  of  China  quote  Heaven  as  the 
universal  Parent,  and  God  {Shang  Ti, 
“ Sovereign  on  High  ”)  as  the  Disposer 
of  human  affairs,  some  early  Parsee 
theories  concerning  the  potencies  of 
Light  and  Darkness  ^ seem  to  have  been 

1 Sharistan,  an  old  Arabian  writer,  says  of  Zoro- 
aster : “ He  affirmed  Light  and  Darkness  to  be  the 


7 


The  Chinese  People 

imported,  to  influence  the  philosophy 
of  China,  on  the  decadence  of  its 
earliest  form  of  (patriarchal)  religion. 
Two  meteorological  terms,  Yin  (ob- 
scurity) and  Yang  (brightness),  became 
idealised  as  Male  and  Female  potencies, 
— but  happily  never  worshipped  in  China 
as  in  the  fearfully  vile  religion  of  the 
Phoenicians  and  Canaanites.  The  first 
sentence  in  the  standard  history,  then, 
is  : 


“ Infinitude  bore  the  Two  Principles  (Yin  and 
Yang),  and  these  produced  and  evolved  the  whole 
complexity  of  existences.” 

Given  the  universe,  what  about  its 
early  inhabitants  ? On  turning  over  a 
page  describing  a Golden  Age  when 
“ things  grew  and  flourished,  when 
rulers  were  not  emptily  regal  or  states- 
men emptily  honourable,”  we  find  our 
question  answered,  strangely  enough, 
in  full  accord  with  modern  anthropology. 
Truly  some  of  the  ancient  Chinese  were 

two  contrary  principles  which  were  the  origin  of 
everything  subsisting  in  the  world,  the  forms  of  nature 
being  produced  from  a combination  of  these  prin- 
ciples ” (Enfield’s  History  of  Philosophy,  1737, 
p.  27). 


Ideas  of  Primi' 
tive  Man. 


8 The  Call  of  Cathay 

philosophers,  for  almost  every  one  of 
our  modern  discoveries  was  theirs  in 
embryo  ! 

“ At  the  very  beginning  men  dwelt  in  caves  of 
the  wilderness,  on  terms  of  close  familiarity  with 
the 'brutes,  feeling  no  revulsion.  But  as  men  grew 
in  wisdom  and  artifice,  then  enmity  began.  The 
creatures  grew  claws  and  teeth,  horns  and  poison 
(as  snakes),  until  men  could  scarcely  overcome 
them.  At  that  time  men  had  no  notion  of  husbandry, 
but  fed  upon  the  fruits  of  herbs  and  trees  ; they 
knew  not  the  use  of  fire,  but  drank  the  blood  of 
beasts,  and  ate  their  flesh,  and  used  their  skins  to 
cover  themselves. 

“ At  the  beginniug  of  human  existence  men  recog- 
nised a mother,  but  not  a father  : they  felt  mutual 
likings,  but  knew  not  the  proprieties  of  marriage. 
They  slept  and  snored  ; they  awoke  and  yawned. 
Hungered,  they  sought  food  ; satisfied,  they  threw 
away  what  was  left.  They  ate  herbs  and  drank 
blood,  and  used  skins  for  clothing.” 

These  words  hardly  read  like  those  of 
a writer  of  the  year  90  b.c.,  but  that  is 
the  latest  date  we  can  assign  to  them, 
and  they  may  possibly  have  belonged 
to  a much  earlier  century.  In  one 
respect  this  account  of  primitive  man  is 
misleading,  as  it  suggests  that  he  had 
no  morality  whatever.  Whereas  all  re- 
searches into  the  life  of  savage  tribes 
proves  that,  however  widely  their  notions 


The  Chinese  People  9 

of  marriage  differ  from  ours,  there  are 
a number  of  rules  rigorously  observed. 

And  the  difference  between  their 
morality  and  ours  arises  from  the  fact  The  Moral 
that  the  tribe  is  the  unit,  in  which  there  ^ 
is  much  sharing  in  common  ; and  not  the 
family,  as  with  the  Chinese,  or  the  in- 
dividual, as  with  us.  This  conception 
of  units,  tribal  or  family,  of  which  the 
persons  therein  were  just  fractions,  is 
an  important  one  to  bear  in  mind  in 
studying  most  of  the  races  to  which 
missionaries  go  ; and  without  a con- 
ception of  the  family  as  an  ultimate 
unit  we  shall  fail  to  understand  Chinese 
customs,  such  as  the  betrothal  of  young 
folk  who  have  never  met,  and  many 
other  things,  enacted  from  the  family- 
standpoint  by  parents  and  elders. 

Returning  to  our  history,  various 
teachers,  glorified  as  monarchs,  appear  Teachers  of 

4-U  4.  • 4.1.  • i China's  Mythical 

on  the  scene,  who  teach  m their  turn  Age. 
the  art  of  cookery,  exchange  and  barter, 
the  rearing  of  domestic  cattle,  the  be- 
trothal covenant,  husbandry,  silkworm- 
rearing, weaving,  music,  and  medicine. 

We  read  also  that  earlier  than  2852  b.g. 

(according  to  Chinese  dates)  the  king, 


The  Ancient 
Religion. 


The  Sovereign 
on  High. 


lo  The  Call  of  Cathay 

or  chieftain,  erected  a pulpit  for  the 
propagation  of  religion  ; as  also  did 
that  chieftain  whose  name  has  come 
down  to  us,  glorified  as  the  “ Yellow 
Emperor.”  Somewhere  after  2697  b.c.  he 

“ erected  a palatial  hall,  where  he  offered  sacrificial 
worship  to  God,  calling  together  the  whole  populace, 
and  instructing  them  in  religion  and  tribal  regula- 
tions.” 

What  was  that  ancient  religion  of 
China  ? Apart  from  the  two  references 
quoted  above,  we  are  entirely  indebted 
to  the  moralist  Confucius  for  collecting 
and  fixing  the  texts  of  the  ancient  Odes 
and  Royal  Injunctions  (the  Canon  of 
History),  in  which  other  references  are 
found.  Except  that  a secondary  wor- 
ship was  rendered  to  the  spirits  of  hills 
and  streams  (following  a still  more 
ancient  worship  of  the  heavenly  bodies, 
hardly  extant  then)  it  closely  resembled 
what  we  gather  to  have  been  the  religion 
of  Melchisedek  and  Job.  The  Sover- 
eign on  High  was  known  to  be  the  God 
of  goodness  and  righteousness.  As  to 
His  goodness,  in  addition  to  the  passage 
already  cited, ^ we  have  the  following  : 

^ See  page  6. 


The  Chinese  People  n 

“ How  vast  is  God  ! the  Ruler  of  the  populace 
below.” 

“ There  is  the  majestic  God  ; does  He  hate  any 
one  ? How  beautiful  are  the  wheat  and  barley  ! 

What  shining  produce  we  shall  receive  ! ” " 

“ Have  no  doubts  or  anxieties,  for  God  is  with 
you.” 

And  as  to  His  righteousness,  we  read  : 

“ The  majestic  God  has  conferred  upon  the  people 
a moral  sense,  to  comply  with  which  would  give 
them  a right  and  constant  spirit.” 

“ The  favour  of  God  is  not  settled  uncondition- 
ally ; upon  the  good  He  sends  down  manifold 
blessings  ; upon  the  evil-doer  manifest  calamities.” 

Of  a good  chieftain  it  was  said  : 

“ Prince  Wen,  with  the  carefulness  of  a fluttering 
bird,  served  God  intelligently,  and  secured  abundant 
blessings.” 

And  to  a bad  ruler  the  message  came  : 

“It  is  not  God  who  has  caused  this  evil  time,  but 
it  is  you  who  have  strayed  from  the  old  paths.” 

In  this  early  religion,  the  chieftains  Patriarchal 
or  patriarchs  were  priests — representing 
God  to  man  (in  their  exhortations)  and 
man  to  God  (in  their  sacrificial  prayers). 

As  Confucius  tells  us,  the  chieftain 
T‘ang  (afterwards  king  from  1766  to 


12  The  Call  of  Cathay 

1754  B.c.)  prayed  to  God  on  behalf  of 
his  people,  saying  : 

“ I,  the  little  child  Li  [using  his  baby-name]  pre- 
sume to  offer  a dark-coloured  ox  in  sacrifice,  and 
dare  to  announce  to  Thee,  O most  majestic  and 
imperial  God,  that  if  I myself  have  committed  sins, 
they  are  not  to  be  attributed  to  the  people  of  the 
land  ; and  if  the  people  have  committed  sins,  they 
must  rest  on  my  person.’’^ 

What  wonder  that,  as  Chinese  seholars 
read  of  the  God  of  Abraham,  they  regard 
his  religion  as  identieal  with  their  own 
in  the  good  old  days  ! The  pity  of  it 
is  that,  while  the  deseendants  of  Abra- 
ham developed  a saered  intimaey  with 
God,  the  Chinese  merged  His  name  into 
that  of  Heaven  (before  the  days  of 
Confueius),  then  coupled  it  with  Earth, 
depersonalising  it  in  their  thoughts  and 
conceptions,  until  the  advent  of  Protes- 
tant missionaries,  who  have  most  of 
them  used  the  old  term  Shang  Ti  for 
God  (rather  than  the  Roman  Catholic 
Then  Chii,  “ Heaven-lord  ”),  and  so 
have  brought  the  Old  Testament  revela- 
tion of  God  near  to  the  Chinese  mind, 
as  a path  to  the  further  revelation  of 
God  in  the  New  Testament. 


3 


The  Chinese  People 

Coupled  with  this  ancient  worship  of  Homage  to 
God,  there  was  homage  paid  to  deceased 
ancestors,  Confucius  says  : 

“ By  their  great  sacrificial  ceremonies  the  ancients 
served  God  ; by  their  ceremonies  in  tho  ancestral- 
tablet  hall  they  paid  homage  to  their  forefathers.” 

I have  used  the  word  ‘‘  homage  ” rather 
than  the  more  familiar  word  “ worship,” 
for  anciently  there  seems  to  have  been 
no  yrayer  to  ancestors  offered  on  those 
occasions  The  object  of  these  cere- 
monies is  not  to  pray.”— BooA:  of  Rites) ; 
and  thus  it  was  just  worship  ” in  the 
old  English  sense  of  the  term— “ wor- 
ship ” such  as  was  offered  to  Daniel 
(ii.  46),  and  other  men  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment— rather  than  in  our  modern  re- 
ligious sense  of  the  term.  Modern 
Chinese  in  distress  may  cry,  to  their 
ancestors  for  help  ; but  originally  the 
object  of  the  ceremonies  was  to  bring 
the  spirits  near,  to  realise  them  as  still 
part  of  the  family,  to  honour  them, 
and  to  secure  the  blessing  of  God  upon 
filial  sons. 

The  ancient  worship  of  Shang  Ti  is  Modem  Wor^ 
. still  perpetuated  by  the  emperor  of  Ti? 


Modern  Ances- 
tor  Worship.^ 


14  The  Call  of  Cathay 

China  at  the  spring  and  autumn  equi- 
noxes, in  his  eapaeity  of  priest  (literally 
after  the  order  of  Melchisedek)  ; henee 
his  title  Son  of  Heaven,  and  the  term 
Celestial  ^ standing  for  Imperial. 

Homage  to  ancestors  is  also  per- 
petuated to  the  present  day,  by  each 
family.  It  has  remained  the  chief  item 
in  the  religion  of  the  masses  (for  where 
idols  have  been  worshipped  it  has  been 
as  an  extra,  and  not  considered  meri- 
torious, as  they  are  worshipped  for  gam), 
and  naturally  presents  a difficulty  to 
the  missionary.  Were  he  sure  that  it 
is  merely  respectful  homage,  and  not 
worship  in  our  modern  sense  of  the 
word,  he  might  allow  its  continuance, 
even  as  the  Roman  Catholic  mission- 
aries do ; should  he  feel  that  it  is 
“ robbing  God,”  he  will  wish  that  ances- 
tral tablets  be  given  up  by  would-be 
Church  members ; but  this  is  against 
Chinese  law,  though  it  has  been  done. 


1 As  in  the  names  T‘ien-tsin,  “ Celestial  Ferry”  ; 
THen  ping,  “Celestial  troops.”  But  the  Chinese 
populace  should  never  be  called  “ Celestials  ” : 
this  is  one  of  our  blunders  which  amuses  them 
exceedingly. 


The  Chinese  People  15 

The  Church  is  thus  planning  for  a via 
media  which  will  conserve  all  the  ad- 
mirable features  of  respect  for  the  dead, 
without  any  lowering  of  the  paramount 
position  due  to  the  One  Ancestor,  God. 

^ Hi  ^ H: 

The  Chinese  tribe  whose  beginnings  The  Chinese 
we  have  to  study  appear  as  settlers  China, 
around  the  sharp  bend  of  the  Yellow 
River  (Huang  Ho),  in  what  is  modern 
Shensi,  south  Shansi,  and  west  Honan, 
somewhere  about  2400  b.c.  There  are  Whence  Cime 
indications  in  the  make-up  of  certain  ^ 
Chinese  literary  signs  that  the  original 
Chinese  tribe  came  from  the  west ; 
the  whole  of  Chinese  astronomy  is 
similar  to  that  of  ancient  Chaldea,  and 
the  early  inhabitants  of  that  region, 
prior  to  3800  B.c.,  were  a Mongoloid 
race.  Professor  de  Lacouperie  boldly 
holds  the  theory  that  the  Chinese  were 
originally  allied  to  the  most  ancient 
Chaldeans.  But  we  need  further  evi- 
dence than  the  similarity  of  certain 
names  ^ before  we  can  accept  that  theory 
as  proven  fact. 

^ There  are  certain  elements  in  common  between 
■the  Chinese  language  and  that  of  earliest  Chaldea 


1 6 The  Call  of  Cathay- 

On  the  other  hand,  there  is  no 
evidence  that  the  ancient  chieftain  whom 
the  Chinese  call  the  Yellow  Emperor 
(Huang  Ti)  actually  resided  in  China. 
The  Taoists  ^11  maintain  that  his  palace 
was  among  the  Kuen-lun  mountains 
(north  of  Tibet),  over  a thousand  miles 
to  the  west  of  the  bend  of  the  Yellow 
River,  and  some  of  the  names  of  his 
‘‘  ministers  ” seem  to  be  transliterations 
from  another  language.  From  this  we 
gather  that,  as  far  back  as  we  can 
trace,  the  Chinese  race,  quoted  as  origin- 
ally “ a hundred  families  ” (whence  the 
hundred  surnames  of  modern  China), 
probably  came  from  the  centre  of  Asia, 
with  perchance  a more  ancient  home 
in  the  west  of  Asia,  which  we  believe 
to  have  been  the  cradle  of  the  race. 

The  settlement  of  the  original  Chinese 
tribe  in  the  Yellow  River  region  was 

(such  as  the  “ worship  radical  ” prefixed  to  signs 
connected  with  religion),  but  the  Chaldean  language 
progressed  toward  an  alphabet  (from  which  the 
Hebrew  alphabet  afterwards  evolved),  while  the 
Chinese  has  stopped  short,  alphabetless,  with  its 
worn-down  picture  strokes,  classified  under  214 
radicals,  as  water,  wood,  hand,  heart  ; for  fiuids, 
rivers,  lakes,  seas  ; things  wooden  ; actions  of  the 
hand  ; or  feehngs  of  the  heart. 


17 


The  Chinese  People 

followed  by  expansion  similar  to  that  Expansion  of 

A !•  liiT*  Chinese 

of  the  Aryan  tribe  that  settled  in  the  Dominion. 
Panjab  in  India.  Absorption  of  neigh- 
bouring territory  by  conquest  and  inter- 


CHINESE  WHEN  THEY  ENTERED  CHINA. 

marriage  took  place,  various  regions  and 
tribes  of  ‘‘  barbarians  ” became  tribu- 
tary or  subject  to  the  tribe  of  higher 
civilisation ; but,  in  China,  without 


Nori'Chinese 

Invasions. 


The  Effect  on 
Language. 


The  Effect  on 
Character. 


1 8 The  Call  of  Cathay 

the  institution  of  caste.  Also,  through 
the  centuries,  there  were  repeated  in- 
roads of  non-Chinese  tribes,  Turkic  and 
Tartar,  so  that  those  retaining  the 
earlier  languages  of  China  were  pushed 
southward  ; even  as  the  British  Celts 
were  northward  and  westward,  to  the 
Highlands  of  Scotland,  to  Wales  and 
Cornwall.  Thus  we  have  the  Cantonese 
and  other  dialects  of  old  Chinese  ex- 
tant in  the  south  and  south-east  of 
China  ; while  the  language  of  the  central 
332,000,000  has  been  Tartarised  ^ into 
what  we  call  the  “ mandarin,”  or 
official,  dialect. 

Though  one  dialect  is  now  spoken  in 
all  but  five  of  the  modern  provinces 
(Kiangsu  southwards  to  Kwangsi),  there 
are  more  or  less  marked  differences  in 
the  disposition  of  the  Chinese  of  these 
common-dialect  provinces.  Shantung 
men  are  impulsive  and  ardent ; Shansi 

1 Not  that  Tartar  words  have  been  introduced, 
but  certain  harshnesses  of  sound  have  been  cast  off, 
the  Cantonese  Fatshan  becoming  Fusan,  the  Can- 
tonese Oopack  becoming  Hoo-her  {Hupeh),  etc., 
like  a coin  wearing  smooth  by  rough  usage  : all 
mid- China  sounds  being  easier  for  the  vocal  organs 
than  those  of  the  more  ancient  Cantonese. 


19 


The  Chinese  People 

men  are  cold-blooded  and  persevering; 
Hupeh  men,  with  fine  capacities  for 
trade,  are  voted  “ bean-curd  ” by  men 
of  Hunan,  who  call  themselves  “ men 


of  iron.”  And  there  is  a considerable 
amount  of  provincial  exclusiveness  yet 
to  be  overcome  before  China  can  become 
one  homogeneous  nation. 

When  the  ancient  conquest  or  absorp-  History. 


20 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

tion  of  the  regions  surrounding  ‘‘  the 
Middle  Realm  ” (as  the  Chinese  called 
their  early  centre  of  government ; their 
own  name  for  all  China  now)  had  made 
them  masters  of  the  northern  portion 
of  China,  then  stated  dynasties  began. 
The  following  table  may  serve  to  fix  in 
the  mind  the  main  outline  of  Chinese 
history  (Central  China  sounds  being 
given  in  brackets)  : 


The  Chinese  Dynasties 


Hsia  (shar) 

Shang  (sarng)  . . 

Chow  (dzo) 

Chhn  

Han 

“The  Three  Realms”  . . 


2205-1766  B.c. 
..  1766-1122 

..  1122-2551 

255-206 
206  B.c.-A.D.  220 
A.D.  221-264 


Chin  (jin) 

265-419 

The  Southern  Sung  and  Ts’i, 
and  Northern  Wei  . . 

420-589 

Sui  (sway) 

589-618 

T‘ang  (tarng)  . . 

618-907 

“ The  Five  Dynasties  ” 

907-960 

Sung  (soong) 

960-1280 

Yuan  or  Mongol 

1280-1368 

Ming 

1368-1644 

Ta  Chhng  or  Manchu  . . 

1644- 

1 For  the  last  four  hundred  years  of  this  period 
the  empire  consisted  of  a varjdng  number  of  con- 
tending States  under  Chow  Dukes  or  rulers. 


The  Chinese  People  21 

It  should  be  remembered  that  these 
dynasties  were  not  all  as  clean  cut  as, 
say,  those  of  England.  There  was  con- 
siderable overlapping  at  certain  periods, 
and  sometimes  smaller  dynasties,  not 
included  in  the  above  table,  ruled  over 
a part  of  the  empire. 

Each  dynasty  began  with  a vigorous 
and,  generally,  warlike  ruler,  who 
founded  it  upon  the  ruins  of  the  previous 
dynasty.  The  original  strain  of  vigour 
in  each  case  lasted  perhaps  through 
three  or  four  generations,  after  which  we 
generally  find  a succession  of  monarchs 
on  a down-grade,  each  weaker  than  his 
predecessor.  The  history  abounds  in 
romantic  incidents.  A Buddhist  girl- 
nun  grasped  the  imperial  power  (after 
becoming  concubine  of  an  emperor) 
from  684  to  709.  A beggar-lad,  after- 
wards a Buddhist  novice,  then  a general, 
founded  the  Ming  Dynasty  and  reigned 
from  1368  to  1398.  And  the  events 
connected  with  the  rise  and  fall  of 
every  dynasty  form  exceedingly  inter- 
esting reading  in  the  original  (from  which 
J.  Macgowan’s  Imperial  History  of  China 
in  English  is  largely  translated).  The 


22 


Confucius. 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

most  interesting  period  of  all  was  the 
Chow  Dynasty  (1122-255  b.c.),  when 
China,  being  divided  up  into  some 
fourteen  dukedoms  that  became  rival 
kingdoms,  presented  an  ancient  edition 
of  European  conditions,  with  its  rivalries 
and  diplomacies,  its  wars  and  treaties, 
understandings  and  peace-congresses. 

It  was  under  the  clash  of  these  rival 
interests,  and  local  vicissitudes,  and 
widespread  depravity,  that  China  pro- 
duced her  sages  and  philosophers  : Con-* 
fucius  (born  b.c.  551,  died  b.c.  479)  and 
Mencius  (born  b.c.  371,  died  b.c.  288) 
with  their  appeal  to  the  conscience, 
for  the  strengthening  of  human  relations, 
especially  those  between  son  and  father 
(extending  the  filial  relationship  from 
populace  to  ruler),  and  those  of  the 
family  generally.  Confucius  never  pro- 
fessed to  revive  a religion,  except  the 
priestly  sacrifices  to  God  on  the  part 
of  the  emperor  ; he  regarded  religious 
problems  as  beyond  him,  and  concen- 
trated his  efforts  upon  the  claims  of 
known  duty — based  on  the  relations  of 
life — in  the  sight  of  all-seeing  Heaven. 
His  teaching  was  purely  ethical.  A 


23 


The  Chinese  People 

text-book  in  English  (prepared  by 
Chinese  for  modern  Chinese  schools), 
says  : “ Confucianism  was  never  a 

religion,  but  a system  of  ethics.”  And 
in  the  strict  sense  of  the  word,  a Con- 
fucian  may  be  a Christian,  observing 
his  main  teaching  ; while  a Christian 
will  be  sadly  lacking  in  moral  back- 
bone if  he  does  not  follow  those  duties 
that  are  based  on  his  earthly  relations, 
as  son,  brother,  husband,  father,  friend, 
neighbour,  citizen.  The  essence  of 
Confucianism  is  compatible  with  Chris- 
tian ethics  on  the  earth-plane ; only 
some  of  the  details  clash.  Confucius 
was  the  embodied  conscience  of  his 
time,  and  his  system  has  a permanent 
value  not  confined  to  China,  when  ener- 
gised into  reality  by  the  power  divine — 
for  which  he  did  not  teach  men  to 
pray. 

His  senior  contemporary  Lao  Tzu,  Lao  Tzu. 
(born  B.c.  604),  was  by  no  means  so 
practical.  He  was  a dreamer  who  might 
have  had  in  his  mind  the  couplet  of 
Bishop  Heber  : 

“ Every  prospect  pleases, 

And  only  man  is  vile.” 


Taoism. 


24  The  Call  of  Cathay 

He  asked  himself  why  trees  and 
flowers  grew  naturally  into  strength 
and  beauty,  while  human  nature  grew 
so  far  away  from  its  ideal.  He  saw  that 
trees  and  flowers  were  quiescent  toward 
the  great  Nature-force  which  he  called 
Tao,  and  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that 
were  humanity  to  gain  the  quiescence 
of  the  vegetable  world,  it  would  grow 
normally  beautiful  without  effort.  Yes, 
we  may  say,  if  after  penitent  trust  in  a 
Saviour  humanity  subjected  itself  to 
the  full  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
that  would  bring  Lao  Tzu  into  line  with 
the  best  of  the  Christian  mystics  of  the 
Middle  Ages,  or  with  the  Society  of 
Friends  of  later  days.  But  for  sinful 
humanity  neither  to  know  its  sin  nor 
its  God,  nor  strenuous  supplication  for 
pardon  and  power ; to  vegetate  in  spirit, 
and  to  expect  to  grow  into  an  ideal 
human  vegetable — there  are  certain  ad- 
verse forces  within  and  around  men 
that  reduce  this  philosophy  to  an  empty 
dream.  Lao  Tzu  founded  no  cult ; but 
his  word  Tao  was  adopted  by  other 
mystics,  seekers  after  “ the  pill  of 
immortality,”  of  “ un-ageing  life,”  and 


Photo  hy\  0 . A.  Coma  y JUDGES  IN  A TAOIST  PURGATORY 

A SUPERIOR  SHRINE  TO  “ DADDY  AND  GRANNY,”  TEMPLE. 

GUARDIANS  OF  THE  SOIL. 


25 


The  Chinese  People 

ma^ic  and  mystery  generally,  from  the 
Ch‘in  Dynasty  onwards.  Then,  when 
Buddhism  (introduced  in  a.d.  61  and 
at  various  subsequent  times,  by  the 
arrival  of  monks  from  North  India) 
departed  so  far  from  its  original  pro- 
gramme of  being  a religion  for  celibates 
as  to  promise  sons  to  married  women 
who  would  pray  to  the  Son-bestowing 
Goddess  for  them  (in  the  T'ang 
Dynasty),  these  Taoists,  or  doctors  of 
Nature-force,  deified  a Chfin  Dynasty 
magician  as  God  of  Riches,  to  bestow 
wealth  upon  those  who  prayed  to  him 
for  it.  They  made  other  deities  out  of 
certain  ancient  worthies  of  China  ; and 
temples  to  the  “ Dragon-king,”  “ Horse- 
king,”  and  shrines  to  “ Daddy  and 
Granny,”  the  guardians  of  the  soil, 
became  regarded  as  Taoist. 

The  first  Buddhist  image  (a  Buddha  introduce 
of  gold)  was  brought  to  China  in  the  dhism. 
reign  of  Han  Wu  Ti  (b.c.  140-187),  being 
captured  in  war  in  the  region  of  Turkes- 
tan ; and  the  son  of  its  slain  owner  was 
brought  with  it,  gained  favour,  and 
became  the  Imperial  equerry.  The 
image  was  set  up  in  the  palace,  and  the 


26 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

exiles  from  the  West  worshipped  it. 
This  caused  a very  strong  protest  from 
statesmen  who  were  jealous  of  the 
emperor’s  new  favourite — a very  inter- 
esting protest  to  the  student  of  religions  : 

“ These  men  use  no  oxen  or  sheep  in  sacrifice, 
but  merely  light  incense,  and  call  that  ‘ worship  ’ ! ” 

Which  seems  to  prove  incidentally  that 
all  worship  of  any  divinity,  up  to  the 
first  century  b.c.  in  China,  had  been 
attended  with  the  taking  of  animal  life. 

Most  Chinese  preachers  tell  a tale  as 
to  Han  Ming  Ti  (a.d.  58-75)  dreaming 
that  he  saw  a golden  image  of  Buddha 
enter  the  palace.  This  is  debated 
in  the  authorised  history  ; and  we 
may  gather  that  he  either  had  that 
golden  image  preserved  in  the  palace, 
or  had  heard  of  it.  The  orthodox 
account  of  his  embassy  is  contained  in 
the  sentence  : 

“ Hearing  that  there  was  a Spirit  in  the  West 
called  Fu,i  he  sent  an  embassy  to  India  to  ask  for 
the  doctrine,  and  to  obtain  the  books.” 

This  embassy,  we  find  from  other 

^ Fu  was  meant  to  represent  the  Sanskrit  syllable 
Budh,  and,  being  identical  in  sound  with  the  word 
for  happiness,  was  regarded  ns  a fortunate  name. 


27 


The  Chinese  People 

sources,  consisted  of  eighteen  persons, 
who  started  in  a.d.  61  and  returned  in 
67,  with  certain  writings  and  several 
Indian  monks  who  by  and  by  expounded 
them  in  the  palace/ 

The  next  patron  of  Buddhism  was  a 
Hunnish  bandit  of  Shensi,  who,  having 
assisted  a Hunnish  prince  to  kill  his 
elder  brother  and  to  seize  his  father’s 
authority,  defeating  the  Chinese  troops, 
capturing  the  Chinese  emperor,  making 
him  a menial  attendant  at  banquets, 
and  then  poisoning  him,  was  inspired 
toward  ambitious  designs  on  his  own 
account  by  the  prophecies  of  an  Indian 
monk  Buddhochinga ; and  on  the 
death  of  his  prince  became  ruler  of 
quite  half  of  China.  After  a reign  of 

1 The  contemporary  historian  reports  on  this 
literature  as  follows:  “These  books  magnify  the 
virtue  of  vacancy  of  mind,  uphold  a compassion 
that  abstains  from  taking  animal  life,  assume  that 
man’s  spiritual  essence  is  undestroyed  by  death  and 
appears  in  another  incarnation,  in  which  the  good 
and  bad  deeds  of  this  life  are  subject  to  recompense ; 
and  that  by  the  renovation  of  the  spiritual  essence 
the  state  of  Buddhahood  may  be  attained.  Such 
words  are  surely  big  enough  to  catch  the  ignorant. 
But  at  Court  only  the  younger  brother  of  the 
■ emperor  became  enamoured  of  this  teaching.” 


28 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

three  years  he  died,  and  his  son  was 
assassinated  the  following  year  by  his 
general  Shih  Hu  Stone  Tiger  ”),  who 
established  himself  ruler  of  North  China, 
issuing  an  ediet  saying  : 

“We  ourselves  being  of  foreign  origin,  may  well 
comply  with  our  o\vn  customs  in  all  that  concerns 
religion.  And  we  hereby  authorise  all  the  populace, 
be  they  AVestern  or  Chinese,  to  follow  Buddha  as  they 
may  choose.” 

This  was  the  first  step  towards  Budd- 
hism beeoming  a popular  religion  in 
China,  and  in  the  year  336  a further 
ediet  was  issued  by  this  ruler  withdraw- 
ing all  prohibition  of  Chinese  subjeets 
beeoming  monks  and  nuns ; for  up 
to  that  date  all  Buddhist  monks  had 
been  foreigners. 

A few  years  later  an  indigent  lad 
applied  at  a temple  for  residenee  as  a 
noviee ; but  as  he  grew  up,  finding  that 
his  seniors  knew  little  about  Buddhism, 
he  formed  the  bold  resolve  to  travel  to 
India  to  learn  the  truth  at  headquarters. 
His  surname  was  Rung  (of  the  elan  of 
Kung-fu-tzu  or  Confueius),  but  the 
elerieal  name  he  adopted  was  Fa  FIsien 
(“  Law  Revealed  ”).  He  set  out  in  the 


The  Chinese  People  29 

year  399  and  returned  in  414,  writing 
a famous  book  known  in  English  as 
The  Record  of  the  Buddhist  Kingdoms 
(Clarendon  Press,  1866)  ; which  Record 
has  been  of  much  use  to  Indian  histori- 
ans, as  Avell  as  to  students  of  Buddhism 
generally. 

The  domains  of  Shih  Hu  were  divided 
at  his  death,  but  the  ruler  of  the  western 
half  of  them  became  an  ardent  patron 
of  Buddhism,  making  an  Indian  monk 
his  prime  minister  and  preacher  to  his 
statesmen,  until  nine  out  of  every  ten 
families  in  his  dominions  (the  modern 
Kansu)  professed  Buddhism.  The 
monasteries,  however,  became  the  haunt 
of  low  characters,  were  distilleries  and 
worse,  and  in  the  year  446  not  one  of 
them  was  left  standing. 

In  the  sixth  century  Buddhism  had 
two  strangely  contrasted  royal  patrons  : 
one  in  the  south,  Liang  Wu  Ti  (502-549), 
the  other  in  the  north.  Queen  Hu  of 
Wei.  The  former  was  a languid  man, 
who  disliked  the  cares  of  government, 
and,  after  inviting  three  thousand 
Indian  monks  to  his  dominions,  himself 
wrote  a Buddhist  ritual  in  ten  books 


Influence  of 
Nestorianism 
on  Chinese 
Buddhism. 


30  The  Call  of  Cathay 

(527),  assumed  the  garb  of  a monk, 
restrieted  himself  to  one  vegetarian  meal 
a day,  and  retired  into  a monastery. 
His  statesmen  fetched  him  out  twice, 
but  on  his  third  return  he  was  allowed 
to  die  there  of  neglect  and  starvation. 

Queen  Hu  of  Wei  (quoted  by  some 
English  writers  as  a Buddhist  saint)  in 
the  year  518  killed  the  senior  Queen 
Dowager  Kao,  in  a treacherous  and 
shocking  manner,  and  immediately  sent 
to  the  west  “ begging  for  Buddhist 
monks  and  books.”  Doubtless  she  felt 
the  need  of  some  sedative  teaching  to 
“ minister  to  a mind  diseased.” 

In  the  next  century  a scholar  named 
Ch‘en  I (better  known  as  the  monk 
Hsrian  Tsang),  finding  many  discrep- 
ancies in  Buddhist  books,  went  himself 
to  India,  returning  in  645  with  six 
hundred  and  fifty  volumes ; was  re- 
ceived with  honour  by  T^ang  T‘ai  Tsung 
(who  became*  also  the  patron  of  Nes- 
torian  missionaries^),  and  proceeded  to 
translate  what  he  had  acquired. 

This  marks  the  last  importation  of 
the  original  Buddhism  into  China. 

^ See  Chap.  II. 


The  Chinese  People  31 

Henceforth  it  was  to  come  from  Tibet 
(where  a daughter  of  T‘ai  Tsung  was 
Queen  Consort),  and  was  much  modi- 
fied by  Nestorian  influence,  both  in 
Tibet  and  after  its  reaching  China  (for 
the  Nestorians  were  in  favour  in  China 
for  two  hundred  years  after  this). 

Korea  and  Japan  never  had  the  Budd- 
hism which  was  propagated  in  Ceylon, 
Burma,  and  Siam ; and  China  soon 
dropped  what  she  had  received.  The 
Buddhist  monks  were  wise  enough  to 
see  that  the  warmer  elements  of  Nes- 
torianism  were  more  popular  in  the 
Far  East  than  their  own  tepid  doctrines 
of  prohibition  and  self- extinction. 
But,  dropping  the  spiritual  elements 
(except  in  Japan,  where  justification  by 
faith  in  Buddha  is  held  by  one  sect), 
they  materialised  various  Nestorian 
elements,  to  suit  the  popular  demand. 
From  pictures  or  images  of  the  Virgin 
and  Child,  they  adopted  a new  goddess, 
a virgin  with  a child  in  her  arms,  the 
Son-bestower,  under  the  name  of  Kuan- 
yin  (“  Scrutineer  of  [the]  sounds  [long- 
ing sighs  of  earth]  ”).  It  is,  then,  this 
modified  religion  that  became  popular- 


Modern 

Religious 

Condition. 


32  The  Call  of  Cathay 

ised  in  China,  Korea,  and  Japan,  with 
various  Nestorian  elements  adhering  to 
it.  Seeing  which,  and  not  knowing 
their  late  origin,  unsuspecting  travellers 
to  the  Far  East  have  come  back  with 
the  amazing  statement  that  Christianity 
seems  to  have  borrowed  much  from 
Buddhism  ! 

At  first  there  was  opposition  from 
Confucianism,  and  rivalry  from  Taoism, 
but  all  three  cults  have  long  since 
settled  down  together  in  heterogeneous 
mixture ; Confucianists  sending  their 
brides  to  Kuan-yin  temples  to  pray  for 
sons,  so  as  to  perpetuate  ancestral 
homage,  and  employing  both  Buddhist 
and  Taoist  monks  to  chant  masses  to- 
gether to  escort  deceased  parents  to 
their  respective  heavens.  Otherwise 
Buddhism  and  Taoism  have  ceased  to 
be  forces  to  reckon  with  in  China  ; even 
as  H.  E.  Chang  Chih-tung  wrote  in  a 
book  for  Chinese  literati  in  1898  : “ Both 
cults  are  on  their  last  legs,  and  cannot 
survive  much  longer,  while  the  Western 
religion  (Christianity)  is  flourishing 
daily.” 

The  Chinese  are  not,  as  a whole,  a 


Photo  hy'\  {It.  Ilvtihiiisin. 

yama’s  eall  of  judgment. 


photo  hy] 


[IF.  A.  Cornahy. 

[p.  33 


THE  LAUGHING  BUDDHA. 


33 


The  Chinese  People 

religious  nation,  though  a deep  religious 
strain  may  be  found  among  some  sec- 
tions of  the  people,  known  as  “ Vege- 
tarians ” and  the  like.  A considerable 
proportion  of  the  houses  of  Central 
China  are  devoid  of  idols  or  even  ances- 
tral tablets  (which  may  be  partly  due 
to  the  great  blow  which  the  anti-idolatry 
Taiping  rebels  inflicted  on  those  regions 
from  1852  to  1855).  Many  are  content 
with  the  annual  offerings  at  the  ances- 
tral graves,  at  the  time  of  our  Easter; 
the  lighting  of  three  sticks  of  incense 
morning  and  evening — to  any  divinity 
who  cares  to  receive  them  ; an  occa- 
sional bow  before  the  “ Daddy  and 
Granny  ” shrines,  if  in  country  parts  ; 
and  an  occasional  visit  to  temples — 
by  women  to  pray  for  sons,  by  men 
to  pray  for  riches,  or  by  either  to  pray 
for  the  health  of  a relative.  Religion 
seems  to  occupy  but  a fraction  of  their 
thoughts,  and  missionaries  have  some- 
times almost  wished  they  were  better 
idolaters  (more  in  earnest  about  what 
gods  they  know),  that  they  might,  as  a 
whole,  make  better  Christians.  They 
are  mostly  occupied  with  the  struggle 


The  Chinese 
not  a Religious 
Race. 


Governing 

Officials, 


34  The  Call  of  Cathay 

for  existence,  if  poor ; with  farming 
or  business,  if  middle-class  ; with  strife 
for  the  gains  of  office,  if  scholarly. 

Starting,  as  we  have  seen,  with  a 
patriarchal  government  in  remote  an- 
tiquity, China  has  retained  that  govern- 
ment in  theory.  The  emperor  and 
magistrates  are  called  alike  “ Father- 
mother  of  the  populace  ” — their  • pink 
babies,”  or  little  ones.  Literary  man- 
darins ^ are  rulers  over  provinces,  dis- 
tricts, or  counties,  over  one  or  many 
cities,  as  in  the  Parable  of  the  Pounds  ; 
the  particular  “ talents”  which  have 
won  them  these  posts  being  talents 
metaphorical — literary  scholarship  and 
style,  and  talents  actual — silver  presents 
to  the  amount  of  perhaps  £1,000.  And 
the  posts  thus  obtained  are  practically 
unsalaried  ones  (the  working  expenses 
covering  far  more  than  the  meagre 
allowance).  They  have  thus  to  live — 
‘‘  somehow  ” ; to  recoup  themselves 
for  the  expenses  of  being  recommended 
to  office,  and,  if  possible,  to  secure  an 

^ From  the  Portuguese  mandar,  to  command  ; com- 
pare our  word  mandate. 


A.  COUNTY  MAGISTRATE. 


P.  34] 


The  Chinese  People  35 

amount  upon  which  to  retire.  This  is 
partly  arranged  by  the  people  paying 
three  times  the  stated  amount  of  the 
taxes,  two -thirds  of  whieh  gross  amount 
goes  to  the  eounty  magistrate,  who  hands 
the  sum  quoted  to  the  district  man- 
darin, who  makes  his  deductions,  and 
so  on.  But  as  tax  “ squeezes  ” are 
not  adequate  to  support  the  officials, 
money  is  made  in  other  ways,  all  of  them 
reprehensible  from  our  Western  stand- 
point, but  almost  neeessitated  by  a 
bad  old  system,  a system  whose  abuses 
were  known  and  recorded  as  far  back 
as  the  seventh  century  b.c.  in  the 
words  : 

“ The  depravity  of  the  officials  is  the  ruin  of  the 
realm,  and  the  officials  being  lost  to  virtue  is  from 
their  fondness  for  bribes.” 


This  is  the  chief  matter  of  internal 
administration  which  China  will  have 
to  take  in  hand,  if  she  is  to  prosper 
among  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

Among  China’s  other  drawbacks  are  Materialistic 
the  utterly  materialistic  outlook  which 
mistakes  militarism  for  prosperity  (and 
for  this  we  of  the  West  can  hardly 


Commercial 

Character. 


Courtesy. 


36  The  Call  of  Cathay 

blame  them),  and  exelusiveness  for 
patriotism  ; or  in  soeial  and  religious 
matters  holds  a merely  business-like 
view  of  the  ease : the  worship  of  idols 
being  entirely  for  either  riehes,  sons,  or 
long  life.  And  were  Chinese  asked  to 
explain  the  term  “ Light  of  Asia  ” I 
am  sure  they  would  reply  : “ Paraffin 
oil.” 

On  the  other  hand,  the  much-quoted 
“ cunning  ” among  the  Chinese  popu- 
lace does  not  strike  the  long  resident  as 
by  any  means  a universal  trait.  They 
are  a nation  of  artists,  in  words  and 
ways,  wLich  may  take  the  form  of  skil- 
ful diplomacy,  or,  in  legal  matters,  of 
shameless  lying.  But  most  of  the  shop- 
keepers have  only  one  price  for  their 
goods ; and  the  Chinese  merchant’s 
word  has  been  as  good  as  his  bond, 
until,  perhaps,  recent  years,  when  the 
old  virtue  of  commercial  probity  seems 
somewhat  declining. 

Even  the  poorer  classes  are  court- 
eous one  to  another.  Most  Chinese 
have  learnt  the  difficult  art  of  reprov- 
ing a man  for  misconduct  in  such 
a way  as  not  to  offend  him.  And 


The  Chinese  People  37 

among  the  gentry  courtesy  is  a fine  art 
indeed. 

From  infancy  a child  is  trained  to  Respect  for^ 
respect  his  parents ; and  later  on  to  officials, 
show  respect  for  rulers,  as  being  the 
parents  of  the  people.  Old  age  is 
revered,  and  there  is  much  respect  for 
authority,  unless  an  official  is  wantonly 
oppressive.  Under  good  government, 
such  as  that  of  Hong  Kong  and  Singa- 
pore, the  Chinese  people  are  very  easy 
to  manage.  With  a due  amount  of 
freedom  and  sustenance,  they  are  a con- 
tented race. 

They  are  also  remarkably  cheerful  Sociability, 
and  social.  No  Chinaman’s  house  is 
regarded  as  his  “ castle  ” ; its  main 
room  is  regarded  as  belonging  to  any 
guest  of  his  own  status  who  may  happen 
to  come,  even  though  he  be  a stranger. 

They  make  staunch  friends  with  those 
Westerns  who  win  their  confidence, 
and  become  affectionate  enough  to  be 
easily  lovable. 

In  industry  the  Chinese  excel  all  other  industry. 
Asiatic  races.  Most  of  them  have  been 
trained  to  this  from  necessity,  for  as 
certain  parts  of  the  land  are  over- 


Adaptiveness. 


3^  The  Call  of  Cathay 

crowded  (though  the  whole  empire, 
under  good  management,  should  sup- 
port four  times  its  present  population) 
the  struggle  for  existence  is  keen.  The 
diligenee  in  study  among  young  Chinese 
students  is  remarkable,  for  many  at  the 
age  of  twenty,  added  to  a good  Chinese 
edueation,  have  now  a fair  Western 
edueation  as  well.  Their  recreative 
reading  is  solid,  the  great  mmtive  being, 
‘‘  How  can  I make  my  country  strong  ? ” 
In  business  life,  even  in  manufactures, 
they  are  learning  to  compete  with  the 
foreigner  on  his  own  lines.  Truly  a 
“ coming  race,”  and  one  to  be  reekoned 
with,  whether  we  will  or  no  ! 

They  are  remarkably  adaptive  to  new 
things  when  they  understand  their 
value.  They  have  been  fixed  in  their 
habits  simply  beeause  they  knew  not 
in  what  direetion  to  change  them  ; or 
because  their  rulers  saw  that  new  ways 
were  mixed  up  with  ‘‘  foreign  author- 
ity.” But  now  that  this  fear  has  been 
dispelled  as  regards  Protestant  mission- 
ary work,  the  Christian  religion,  as  such, 
is  everywhere  quoted  as  a good  thing,  and 
sometimes  as  the  one  hope  of  the  nation. 


The  Chinese  People 


39 


ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  discover  in  the  facts  of 
China’s  religious  and  moral  history  her  preparation 
for  the  reception  of  Christianity. 

1.  What  facts  in  this  chapter  make  you  feel  that 
China  is  worth  winning  for  Christ  ? 

2.  In  the  light  of  the  past,  are  we  justified  in 
speaking  of  China  as  a “ changeless  land  ” ? Give 
reasons  for  answer. 

3.  Give,  in  broad  outline,  the  religious  history  of 
China. 

4.  What  are  the  characteristic  features  of  Con- 
fucianism, Taoism,  and  Chinese  Buddhism  ? 

5.  Are  there  any  points  you  admire  in  Chinese 
character  ? 


REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

Broomhall,  M. — The  Chinese  Eynpire. 

Ball,  J.  Dylr. — Things  Chinese.  (Articles  on 
“ Geography,”  “ History,”  “ Government,” 
“ Religion,”  etc.) 

Kelley,  A.  R. — The  Great  Chinese  AwaTening 
(Sections  I.,  II.,  III.). 

Douglas,  R.  K. — Coniucianism  and  Taoism. 

Beal,  S. — Buddhism  in  China. 

De  Groot,  J.  J.  M. — The  Religion  of  the  Chinese, 


CHAPTER  II 


Ancient  China 
and  Western 
Asia, 


THE  STORY  OF  EARLY  MISSIONARY 
WORK 

In  the  table  of  dynasties,  given  in  the 
previous  chapter,  there  will  be  noted 
the  word  Chhn  (255-207  b.c.),  which  is 
really  the  word  used  in  Isaiah  xlix.  12, 
“ These  from  the  land  of  Sinim,”  ad- 
apted. For  the  large  State  of  Chhn 
(which  swallowed  up  the  whole  land 
255  B.c.)  was  in  the  extreme  west  of 
the  realm,  and  thus  nearest  to  West 
Asia.  And  as  the  Greeks  gave  us  the 
word  Palestine  from  that  part  of  Judaea 
nearest  to  them  (Philistia),  so  the  syl- 
lable Chhn  became  used  in  the  west 
for  the  whole  “ Middle  Realm.”  The 
Hebrews  called  it  Sinim,  the  Greeks 
Sina  or  Thina  (the  first  notice  being  by 
Eratosthenes,  who  was  born  276  b.c.). 
The  French  still  retain  the  soft  initial, 
but  we  hardened  it  back  again  into 

40 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  41 

China}  And  we  are  now  to  trace  the 
earliest  beginnings  of  God’s  calling  forth 
a people  for  His  own  possession  from 
the  remote  east,  as  the  term  doubtless 
signified  in  Isaiah’s  time. 

NESTORIAN  MISSIONS 

Nestorius  was  the  Patriarch  of  Con-  Nestonus. 
stantinople  in  a.d.  428 ; but  coming 
under  the  influence  of  the  Antiocene 
school,  he  drew  so  wide  a distinction 
between  the  divine  and  human  sides  of 
our  Lord’s  nature  as  to  imply  a two- 
fold personality ; he  held  that  the 
Virgin  Mary  was  the  mother  merely  of 
His  human  nature,  which  was  a chal- 
lenge to  the  increasing  reverence  paid 
to  the  Virgin.  Cyril  of  Alexandria  took 
up  the  matter  ; a bitter  controversy 
ensued  ; a General  Council  was  sum- 
moned at  Ephesus  in  431,  and,  though 
some  terms  of  accommodation  were 
drawn  up  between  the  two  parties, 

^ Catliay,  Kathay,  or  properly  Kiiai,  was  the  name 
of  a tribe  of  Tartars  in  possession  of  the  northern 
part  of  China,  westward  to  Kashgar,  from  the  year 
917  to  1126. 


2* 


42  The  Call  of  Cathay 


The^^Nestorian 

Tablet/' 


(i)  Concerning 
Doctrine* 


Nestorius  was  banished  in  435  to 
Arabia.  His  followers,  being  driven  out 
of  Edessa,  made  Nisibis  their  centre, 
and  carried  on  a successful  missionary 
enterprise  throughout  Persia,  spreading, 
under  the  rule  of  the  caliphs,  in  Arabia 
and  Syria. 

The  story  of  their  entrance  into  China 
is  related  on  the  famous  Nestorian 
Tablet,  dated  781  and  dug  up  in  1625, 
on  the  site  of  the  early  capital  of 
China,  Ch‘ang-an  (Perpetual  Peace), 
now  called  Sian  (Western  Peace). 

As  to  their  teaching  in  China,  the 
tablet  reads  : 


“It  is  acknowledged  that  there  is  One  unchange- 
able, true  and  still,  the  first  and  unoriginated,  incom- 
prehensible in  His  intelligence  and  simplicity  ; the 
last  and  mysteriously  existing  ; who  with  His 
hands,  operating  in  abysmal  mystery,  proceeded  to 
create,  and  by  His  Spirit  to  give  existence  to  all  the 
sacred  ones.  Himself  the  great  Adorable, — is  not 
this  the  Eloah  with  His  marvellous  Being,  Three- 
in-One,  the  unoriginated  True  Lord  ? ” 


Then  follows  a statement  as  to  the 
creation  of  things  and  of  man — who 
had  the  special  gift  of  moral  harmony, 
and  dominion  over  them  all.  He  pos- 


By  permission  of  the] 


[Baptist  Missionary  Society. 
THE  NESTOEIAN  TABLET. 

Sianfu,  Shensi. 


p.  42] 


\ 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  43 

sessed  a perfect  nature,  an  unstained 
mind  free  from  all  inordinate  desires, 
until  led  astray  by  the  devices  of  Satan. 
A breach,  wide  and  great,  was  made 
in  man’s  judgment  of  what  was  right, 
till  there  arose  three  hundred  and 
sixty-five  forms  of  error.  The  dark- 
ness became  denser,  and  men  lost 
their  way,  and  after  long  going  astray 
they  ceased  any  further  search  for  the 
Truth. 

Then  it  was  that  the  Triune  divided 
His  Godhead,  and  the  Messiah  was  born 
of  a virgin  in  Ta  Chhn.^  Angels  pro- 
claimed the  glad  tidings.  A bright  star 
announced  the  felicitous  event.  Per- 
sians saw  its  splendour,  and  came  with 
tribute.  He  fulfilled  the  old  Law,  as 
it  had  been  delivered  by  the  twenty- 
four  sacred  ones.  He  appointed  His 
new  doctrines,  operating  without 

^ Strangely  enough,  the  Chinese,  knowing  no  place- 
names  west  of  the  State  of  Ch‘in  with  any  definite- 
ness, used  the  term  Ta  ChHn  (Great  Ch‘in)  for 
Persia,  and  even  for  the  Roman  Empire.  And 
when  Nestorian  missionaries  appeared  at  the  Court 
of  T‘ang  T‘ai  Tsung,  in  the  year  a.t).  635,  they 
gave  the  name  Ta  Cli'in  to  Syria,  whence  they  had 
come. 


44  The  Call  of  Cathay 

words,  ^ by  the  cleansing  influence  of 
the  Triune.  He  formed  in  man  the 
capacity  for  good- doing  by  the  correct 
faith.  He  threw  open  the  gate  of  the 
three  constant  virtues,^  thereby  bring- 
ing life  to  light  and  abolishing  death. 
His  bright  sun  hung  on  high  to  break 
up  the  abodes  of  darkness  ; His  ship 
of  mercy  ^ was  launched  to  convey  men 
to  the  palace  of  light.  His  mighty 
work  being  thus  completed  He  ascended 
at  midday  to  His  true  place,  leaving 
behind  Him  the  twenty-seven  standard 
books  (of  the  New  Testament),  which 
set  forth  the  great  transformation  (con- 
version) for  the  deliverance  of  the 
soul.  They  institute  the  Washing  by 
water  and  the  Spirit,  cleansing  away 
all  vain  delusions,  and  purifying  men, 
till  they  regain  the  whiteness  of  pure 
simplicity. 

This  seems  copious,  but  there  are 

1 This  quiescent  potency  was  an  ideal  of  Lao  Tzu. 

2 The  duties  between  subject  and  sovereign,  son 
and  father,  wife  and  husband  ; which  Buddhism  had 
all  along  been  criticised  as  having  destroyed  by  its 
mendicant  celibacy. 

A Buddhist  phrase  ; the  world  being  called  a 
“ sea  of  suffering.” 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  45 

two  great  omissions  : one  is  the  Gospel 
itself  I — the  Gospel  of  the  Cross  ; the 
other  the  practice  of  prayer — through 
whieh  the  power  of  the  Gospel  operates. 
On  the  other  hand,  there  was  great  mis- 
sionary earnestness  (perchance  under 
stress  of  persecution  in  the  west),  but 
this  could  not  avail  for  the  renovation  of 
China,  or  even  of  the  converts  obtained, 
in  the  absence  of  the  other  two.  We 
have  and  hold  the  Gospel  of  the  Cross  ; 
let  us  arouse  ourselves  to  the  paramount 
importance  of  prayer  in  its  daily  re- 
ception and  its  propagation.  For  the 
Christian  life  must  ever  be  the  prayer -life 
of  devotion  to  the  crucified  Redeemer. 

Then,  on  the  Tablet,  there  follows  a 
section  relating  that  the 

“ most  virtuous  Olopun,  from  Ta  Ch‘in,  was  among 
the  enlightened  and  holy  men  who  came  to  the 
Court  of  T‘ai  Tsung,  bringing  with  them  the  true 
Scriptures  and  images,” 

and  mentioning  that  these  Scriptures 
were  translated  into  Chinese.  These 
translations  have  not  come  down  to  us. 
But  biographies  of  Buddha,  written 
after  that  date,  have,  substituted  for 
the  original  story,  wholesale  importa- 


(2)  Concerning 
the  Nestor ian 
Entrance  into 
China. 


4^  The  Call  of  Cathay 

tions  from  the  Gospel  story  of  Christ, 
showing  that  the  New  Testament  story 
(minus  the  crueifixion)  was  known  in 
Tibet  and  China  about  that  time. 

The  emperor  sent  a high  minister  to 
greet  Olopun  and  bring  him  to  the 
palaee,  admitted  him  to  audienee,  eon- 
versed  through  an  interpreter  eoneern- 
ing  his  doetrines,  until  he  was  eonvineed 
of  their  rightness  and  truth  ; and  soon 
after  put  forth  a speeial  edict,  con- 
cluding with  the  words  : “ Let  the  sys- 
tem have  free  course  ‘ everywhere  under 
heaven.’  ” ^ 

A monastery  was  built  in  the  capital 
for  the  accommodation  of  twenty- one 
monks.  The  next  emperor  (Kao  Tsung, 
650-683)  caused  other  monasteries  to 
be  built  “ in  every  prefecture  of  the 
empire,  so  that  the  ' lustrous  religion  ’ 
spread  through  all  provinces.” 

(3)  Concerning  Then  camc  a period  of  Buddhist  oppo- 
Nesfodanlm  in  sitiou,  during  the  reign  of  the  un- 
China.  scrupulous  ‘‘  Buddhist  ” Empress  Wu 

(654-719),  “ but  their  machinations  were 
defeated  by  the  greatly  virtuous  Chi-lieh 

1 The  Roman  orhis  terrariim,  or  in  English, 
terrestrial  realm,  a common  classical  term  for  China. 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  47 


and  others,”  apparently  a fresh  arrival 
of  “ able  and  noble  men  from  the  west.” 
On  the  accession  of  T‘ang  Ming  Wang 
(to  give  his  popular  title),  in  713,  four 
brothers  of  the  emperor  were  sent  to  go 
in  person  to  “ the  blessed  buildings,  and 
rebuild  their  altars  ” ; and  on  one 
occasion  seventeen  Nestorian  monks 
were  invited  to  conduct  a religious  ser- 
vice in  the  palace.  In  a later  reign 
an  eminent  Buddhist  from  the  west 
‘‘  threw  all  his  wealth  and  influence  into 
the  promotion  of  the  cause  of  the 
‘ lustrous  religion,’  manifesting  special 
and  extraordinary  benevolence.”  Thus 
the  tablet  ends  “ in  heart  and  hope,” 
with  no  misgivings  as  to  the  future. 
Nestorianism  had  enjoyed  great  favour 
for  a hundred  and  fifty  years,  and 
continued  for  sixty  years  more,  when 
Taoist  influence  gained  the  ascendency 
at  Court ; and  in  841  an  edict  was  ob- 
tained for  the  wholesale  destruction  of 
both  Nestorian  and  Buddhist  monas- 
teries, which  had  probably  become 
haunts  of  corruption.  Nestorianism  in 
China  never  recovered  from  that  blow, 
especially  as  its  western  home  was  now 


The  Decline  of 
Nestorianism. 


48  The  Call  of  Cathay 

in  the  hands  of  militant  Muhammadans, 
A tragic  ending,  both  in  West  and  East 
Asia,  to  what  had  seemed  a promising 
enterprise — if  indeed  any  missionary 
enterprise  can  succeed  without  the 
Gospel  of  the  Cross,  and  persistence  in 
prayer  ! 

But  Nestorianism  was  not  all  at  once 
completely  wiped  out,  for  Marco  Polo, 
in  the  thirteenth  century,  mentions 
Nestorian  churches  in  China  ^ in  quite 
a number  of  cities. 


ROMAN  CATHOLIC  MISSIONS 

The  conquests  of  Gengis  Khan  (died 
1228)  and  his  successors,  and  the  en- 
croachments of  the  Tartars  upon  the 
eastern  frontiers  of  Europe,  induced 


^%One  of  his  notes  reads  : “ There  are  in  this  city 
(Chinkiang)  two  churches  of  Nestorian  Christians 
which  were  established  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1278. 
In  the  year  just  named  the  Great  Khan  sent  a 
Baron  of  his,  whose  name  was  Mar  Sarghis,  a Nes- 
torian Christian,  to  be  governor  of  this  city  for 
three  years.  During  the  three  years  that  he  abode 
there  he  caused  the  two  Christian  churches  to  be 
built.  But  before  his  time  there  was  no  church, 
neither  were  there  any  Christians.” 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  49 

Pope  Gregory  IX.  to  send  embassies 
to  the  Tartar  camps.  The  first  only 
penetrated  a little  way  beyond  the 
frontiers  of  Persia ; but  the  second, 
under  John  de  Plano  Carpini,  of  the  John  de  Piano 
order  of  Preaching  Friars,  reached  the 
Court  of  the  Khan  (at  Karakorum), 
where  they  found  ambassadors  from 
Persia,  India  (the  Muhammadan  court 
of  Delhi),  Russia,  and  China.  Whether 
Carpini  reached  China  we  hardly  know, 
but  he  describes  the  Chinese  as 

“ a mild  and  humanised  people  ; with  a peculiar 
language  of  their  own,  and  better  artisans  in  all  sorts 
of  works  cannot  be  found  in  the  world.  Their  country 
abounds  in  corn,  wine,  gold,  silver,  and  silks,  and,  in 
short,  in  everything  desirable  for  life.” 

This  was  in  1246-7.  The  friar  seems  to 
have  made  a good  impression,  for  in 
1271  Kublai  Khan  (whose  mother  was 
niece  of  “ Prester  John  ”)  wrote  to  the 
Pope  for  a hundred  Catholic  literati. 

In  1303  John  de  Monte  Corvino  reached  John  de  Monte 
Peking,  found  that  a Nestorian  bishop 
had  been  welcomed  before  him,  and 
himself  received  a favourable  reception 
from  the  emperor  Ch'eng  Tsung  (son 
of  Kublai  Khan,  who  had  been  emperor 


Rulers  and 
Religion, 


50  The  Call  of  Cathay 

of  China  from  1280  to  1294).  And  here 
the  reader  should  remember  how  alien 
rulers  from  time  to  time  have  given  great 
impetus  to  a novel  form  of  religion. 

In  China,  221  b.c.,  the  son  of  a 
merchant  adventurer,  though  on  his 
mother’s  side  of  the  lineage  of  Ch‘in, 
ascended  the  throne,  called  himself  Shih 
Huang  Ti,  ‘‘  The  First  Emperor,” 
abolished  the  imperial  worship  of  God, 
and  set  up  eight  gods  of  his  own  : Ti‘en 
chu  (Heaven-lord,  the  term  for  God 
adopted  by  Roman  Catholics),  Ti-chii 
(Earth-lord),  War-lord,  Fang-Principle- 
lord,  Yin  - Principle  - lord.  Moon-lord, 
Sun-lord,  Four-Seasons-lord ; decreed  a 
wholesale  conflagration  of  the  classics  ; 
passed  death-sentence  upon  460  chief 
Confucian  scholars  ; then  welcomed  .to 
his  Court  all  manner  of  magicians,  ex- 
orcists, and  alchemists,  and  so  founded 
modern  Taoism. 

Then,  in  a.d.  384,  it  was  a Hunnish 
ruler  of  North  China  who  first  legalised 
Buddhism,  and  permitted  Chinese  sub- 
jects to  become  monks  and  nuns,  thus 
giving  the  first  great  impulse  to  popular 
Buddhism  in  China. 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  51 

And  now  it  was  a Tartar  ruler  of  Monte 
China  who  welcomed  John  de  Monte  [^°Ch?na! 
Corvino  to  reside  in  Peking  and  to  found 
Roman  Catholic  missions  in  the  land. 

With  what  success,  a letter  of  his  to  the 
vicars-general  of  the  Dominicans  and 
Franciscans  in  Persia  will  show  : 

“ I,  brother  Jean  de  Monte  Corvino,  of  the  order 
of  Minor  Friars,  quitted  Tauris,  the  capital  of  Persia, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1291.  I penetrated  into  the 
Indies,  and  remained  thirteen  months  in  the  church 
of  St.  Thomas  the  Apostle,  where  I baptised  about 
a hundred  persons.  Proceeding  farther  on,  I arrived 
at  the  kingdom  of  Cathay,  the  dominions  of  the 
Emperor  of  Tartary.  . . . On  presenting  to  him  the 
letters  from  the  Pope,  I endeavoured  to  induce  him 
to  embrace  the  religion  of  oiu*  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ; 
but  though  he  was  himself  too  profoimdly  phmged 
in  idolatry  to  do  so,  it  did  not  prevent  him  from 
conferring  many  favours  on  the  Christians.  ...  I 
have  been  persecuted  by  the  Nestorians  for  five 
years,  but  at  length  am  free  from  imperial  sus- 
picion. I have  built  a church  at  the  principal 
residence  of  the  emperor.  In  this  church  I have  bap- 
tised nearly  6,000  persons.  ....  I have  successively 
received  150  boys,  from  seven  to  eleven  years  old, 
have  baptised  them  and  instructed  them  in  the  ele- 
ments of  Greek  and  Latin  literature.  I have  written 
for  their  use  psalters,  as  well  as  thirty  collections  of 
hymns,  and  two  breviaries  ; so  that  eleven  of  the 
boys  can  now  chant  in  choirs,  whether  I am  .present 
mj^self  or  not,  and  several  of  the  others  are  able  to 
transcribe  the  psalters  and  other  books.  The  em- 
peror is  very  fond  of  hearing  them  sing. 


52 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

“ At  certain  hours  I have  the  bells  rung,  and  cele- 
brate divine  service  before  these  children ; and  not 
having  any  written  service,  we  chant  a little  from 
memory.” 


A beautiful  picture  this,  surely,  for, 
with  certain  doctrinal  excrescences  that 
seem  to  deny  direct  access  to  the  Throne 
of  Grace,  this  earliest  Romish  mission- 
ary to  China  and  those  little  choir- 
boys were  worshipping  our  Lord  Jesus  ; 
those  hymns  were  in  praise  of  His  un- 
speakable grace.  ‘‘  The  emperor  is  very 
fond  of  hearing  them  sing.”  And  as 
we  read  of  their  singing  it  makes  our 
hearts  glad  also. 


“ A prince  named  George,  of  the  illustrious  race 
of  the  emperor,  and  formerly  a Nestorian,  attached 
himself  to  me  in  the  first  year  of  my  arrival.  I con- 
verted him  to  the  true  Catholic  faith,  he  has  re- 
ceived minor  orders,  and  when  I celebrate  the  holy 
services  he  assists  me,  dressed  in  his  royal  robes.  . . . 

“ I have  not  for  twelve  years  received  any  intel- 
ligence either  from  the  comt  of  Rome,  or  from  our 
own  order,  and  I am  entirely  ignorant  of  the  state 
of  affairs  in  the  West.  I have  learnt  to  write  in  the 
Tartar  language,  and  have  translated  into  it  the 
whole  of  the  New  Testament,  and  the  psalter,  which 
I have  written  in  very  beautiful  Tartar  characters  ; 
and  finally  I read,  write,  and  preach  publicly  the  law 
of  Christ. 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  53 

“ A certain  Peter  de  Lucalongo,  an  excellent  Chris- 
tian and  rich  merchant,  who  travelled  with  me  from 
Tauris,  bought  a piece  of  land,  and  presented  it  to 
me,  for  the  love  of  God  ; it  is  only  a stone’s  throw 
from  the  palace,  and  when  we  chant  there  the  great 
Khan  can  hear  us  from  his  own  apartments.  The 
two  churches  that  I have  built  are  about  two  miles 
apart,  and  are  both  in  the  interior  of  the  town,  which 
is  of  a great  size  (walls  twenty  miles  round).  I can 
assure  you,  indeed,  that  in  no  part  of  the  world  is 
there  as  vast  an  empire  as  that  of  the  great  Khan. 
I have  permission  to  enter  the  palace,  and  have  an 
acknowledged  office  at  court,  as  legate  from  the 
pope,  and  the  empe.ror  pays  me  as  much  respect  as 
any  other  prelate.” 


Such  is  the  very  human  and  interest- 
ing letter  from  the  first  preacher  of  the 
Cross  of  Christ  in  Peking,  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  fourteenth  century,  more 
than  two  hundred  years  before  the  Re- 
formation in  Europe.  He  represented 
the  highest  Christianity  of  his  day  and 
we  cannot  withhold  our  tribute  of 
admiration  for  the  zealous  aetivities  of 
this  noble  pioneer. 

Two  years  after  the  letter  was  written,  Reinforcements. 
Clement  V.  sent  out  seven  other  mis- 
sionaries to  China—Gerard,  Peregrin, 

Andro  de  Perouse,  and  four  others ; 
creating  John  de  Monte  Corvino  Arch- 


54  The  Call  of  Cathay 

bishop  of  Peking,  and  making  the  seven 
others  his  suffragans.  Of  these  seven 
Franeiscan  monks,  however,  only  the 
three  named  above  survived  the  long 
and  toilsome  journey;  three  died  of 
fatigue  “ soon  after  entering  the  Indies,” 
and  one  of  them  had  to  return  to  Italy 
for  his  health’s  sake.  Travel  to  China 
was  no  light  matter  in  those  early  days ! 
And  has  it  occurred  to  you  that  God, 
in  His  providence,  waited  till  England 
had  regained  her  Gospel  (after  an  age 
of  terrible  mioral  depravity,  following 
the  Restoration)  before  allowing  men  to 
discover  and  apply  the  powers  of  steam, 
for  land  and  ocean  transit  ? 

In  1312  the  Pope  dispatched  three 
new  suffragans  to  the  archbishop  of 
Peking  : Thomas,  Jerome,  and  Peter 
of  Florence.  And  there  was  a lay  helper 
Lay  Helpers,  in  China,  bcsidcs  the  good  merchant 
above  mentioned.  A rich  Armenian 
lady  had  taken  up  her  residence  “ in  a 
large  and  beautiful  town  not  far  from  the 
sea,”  probably  the  present  capital  of 
Chekiang  province,  Hangchow,^  where 
“ Christianity  was  flourishing,”  but  with 

1 Pronounced  Hong-dzo. 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  55 

no  convenient  place  for  worship.  Seeing 
this,  she  built  a magnificent  church 
there,  which  the  archbishop  made  into 
a cathedral,  entrusting  its  administration 
to  Bishop  Gerard. 

The  journey  to  China  in  those  days 
was  not  only  difficult,  but  dangerous. 

Four  other  missionaries  sent  out  to 
China  were  “ martyred  in  the  Indies  by 
Saracens.”  Then,  in  1314,  a monk  of 
Udine  named  Oderic  de  Friuli,  accus- Odenc  de  Friuli, 
tomed  to  extraordinary  mortifications  : 

‘‘  walking  always  bar  e-foot,  with  a vest 
of  chain-mail  next  his  skin,  and  a 
simple  tunic  as  his  only  garment,  living 
on  bread  and  water,  and  often  subjecting 
himself  to  the  scourge,”  left  his  monas- 
tery for  the  Indies,  to  gain  relics  of  the 
martyred  four,  which  having  secured, 
he  visited  Ceylon,  Sumatra,  Java,  and 
Borneo,  arriving  at  length  in  China, 
at  Hangehow,  which  he  compares  to 
Venice,  and  there  deposited  his  relics. 

He  “ wrought  numerous  conversions  in 
the  southern  provinces  of  China,”  where 
the  dialect  differs  widely  from  that  of 
Hangchow  and  the  interior.  But  lan- 
guage seemed  to  be  no  barrier  to  him  ! 


56  The  Call  of  Cathay 

After  three  years  at  Peking,  “ he 
plunged  into  the  wilds  of  Tartary,  to 
the  eountry  of  the  Keraites,  the  aneient 
kingdom  of  Prester  John,”  and  from 
thenee  to  Tibet,  whieh  he  deseribes 
vividly ; then  crossed  the  Himalayas, 
and  traversed  North  India  and  Persia, 
arriving  at  Pisa  in  1330,  after  having 
baptised  “ more  than  twenty  thousand 
infidels  ” ! What  physical  constitu- 
tions  (on  a low  diet),  as  well  as  flaming 
zeal,  these  early  missionaries  had  ! And 
what  a return  to  ‘‘  furlough  ” ! Abbe 
Hue  says  of  him  : 

“ When  he  again  beheld  his  native  country  he 
was  so  changed  by  the  sufferings  and  miseries  he  had 
endured,  his  body  was  so  emaciated,  and  his  face 
so  withered  and  blackened  by  the  sun,  that  his 
relations  could  not  recognise  him  ; nevertheless, 
the  eyes  of  Christians  must  have  contemplated  with 
affection  and  j^ride  this  hero  of  faith,  and  found 
in  his  weather-beaten  person  the  manly  beauty  of 
an  old  warrior  retm’ning  from  a long  campaign, 
mutilated,  and  covered  with  scars.” 

His  first  task  was  to  ask  the  Pope 
for  ‘‘more  apostolic  labourers.”  At 
this  stage,  however,  as  Abbe  Hue  sadly 
relates  : 

“ The  Christian  communities  founded  at  the  cost 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  57 

of  immense  sacrifices  (in  China),  by  monks  of  the 
orders  of  St.  Francis  and  St.  Dominic,  though  flourish- 
ing in  the  commencement,  never  became  deeply 
rooted  enough  in  this  ungrateful  soil  to  withstand 
the  tempest  of  persecution.  The  people,  before 
whose  eyes  the  light  of  the  Gospel  had  shone  for  a 
moment  in  all  its  brilliancy,  soon  relapsed  into  dark- 
ness, and  wandered  far  from  the  path  that  leads 
to  God — that  is,  to  truth  and  life.” 


Our  modern  experience  of  mission 
work  in  China  would  lead  us  almost  to 
expect  such  a relapse  when  we  read  of 
the  thousands  of  uninstructed  persons 
so  hastily  baptised.  Not  only  Oderic 
de  Friuli’s  “ more  than  20,000  infidels 
in  sixteen  years,”  in  regions  of  which 
he  had  not  learned  the  language,  but 
Corvino’s  baptism  of  6,000  persons  in 
six  years  far  exceed  any  reasonable 
“ speed-limit  ” in  a land  where  (in 
Chinese  language)  “ the  human  heart 
is  hard  to  fathom,”  and  all  sorts  of 
side-motives  may  have  prompted,  as 
they  have  done  in  years  under  our  ob- 
servation, a profession  of  adherence  to 
the  Roman  Catholic  creed. 

Ere  long,  too,  the  Tartar  Dynasty,  so 
vigorously  started  by  Kublai  Khan  in 
1280,  grew  rotten  with  corruption.  It 


The  Results 
Examined. 


Revival  of 
Buddhism. 


58  The  Call  of  Cathay 

collapsed  in  1367,  with  the  whole  country 
in  turmoil.  And  the  founder  of  the 
Chinese  Ming  Dynasty,  having  once 
been  a beggar,  then  a Buddhist  novice, 
gave  his  support  to  Buddhism — the 
last  fillip-up  which  that  decadent  re- 
ligion (decadent  as  regards  China)  ever 
received. 

Origin  ol  Anti-  Then,  from  1545  onwards,  Fernando 
oreign  ee  ing,  Pinto  and  other  Portuguese 

pirates  ravaged  the  China  coast,  and 
imported  into  the  nation  a new  element, 
not  to  be  detected  in  history  before,  of 
anti-foreignness — an  element  which  has 
marked  the  intercourse  of  China  with 
the  West  so  constantly  since. 

Edward  VI.  Before  the  first  Jesuit  missionary 
arrived  in  Peking  there  was,  it  is  inter- 
esting to  note,  an  English  attempt  to 
found  missions  in  China.  This  is  re- 
lated in  a phrase  in  the  dedication  of 
an  old  book,  as  follows  (the  italics  are 
mine): 


“ The  dedication  of  ‘ The  historie  of  the  great  and 
mightie  kingdoms  of  China,  and  the  situation  there- 
of ; togither  with  the  great  riches,  huge  cities,  poli- 
tike  government,  and  rare  inuentions  of  the  same.” 
Translated  out  of  Spanish  by  R.  Parke,  London, 


SCENE  IN  THE  COURTYAllD  OF  A LARGE  BUDDHIST  TEMPLE. 

Four  of  the  men  are  monks ; tlie  boys  at  the  extreme  right  and  left  are  novices. 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  59 

Sold  at  the  little  north  doore  of  Paules,  at  the  sign 
of  a gun  1585. 

“ To  M.  Thos.  Candler  esquire. 

“It  is  now  aboue  hue  and  thirty  years  passed, 
right  worshipfull,  since  that  young,  sacred,  and 
prudent  prince,  king  Edward  the  sixt  of  happie 
memorie,  went  about  the  discouerie  of  Cathaia  and 
China,  'partlie  of  desire  that  the  good  young  king  had 
to  enlarge  the  Christian  faith, and  partlie  to  finde 
out  some  where  in  those  regions  ample  vent  for  the 
cloth  of  England.” 

The  ships  thus  sent  forth  failed  to 
reaeh  the  eoast  of  China,  but  discov- 
ered the  Philippine  Islands  instead. 

England  had  first  to  gain  a definite 
Gospel  herself  before  she  could  under- 
take to  spread  it  in  China. 

St.  Francis  Xavier  was  the  first  Jesuit  St.  Francis 
who  attempted  to  enter  China.  He 
started  from  Malacca,  but  died  in  1552, 
on  the  island  of  Shang-ch'uan,  off  the 
Kwangtung  coast. 

Father  Matteo  Ricci,  an  Italian  of  Mattco  Ricci, 
considerable  attainments  in  astronomy 
and  mathematics,  arrived  in  South 


1 Is  not  this  a happy  phrase  ? We  enlarge  the 
faith,  not  by  breaking  down  doctrinal  barriers,  till 
all  becomes  luminous  mist,  but  by  distributing  it, 
as  the  five  loaves  and  fishes  were  distributed  and 
thus  “ enlarged.” 


6o 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

China  in  1583  ; removed  to  the  capital 
of  Kiangsi  Province  (Nanchang)  in 
1588,  and  to  Nanking  in  1595.  Ob- 
serving that  the  results  of  his  work  here 
would  be  at  the  mercy  of  local  man- 
darin caprice,  he  settled  in  Peking  from 
1601  onwards,  securing  the  good-will 
of  the  emperor  and  statesmen.  He 
must  have  had  a very  fine  stylist  as 
Chinese  writer,  for  he  wrote  several 
works  in  the  vocabulary  and  style  of 
an  old  Taoist  mystic,  Chuang  Tzu  (the 
Philosopher  Chuang)  of  the  third  and 
fourth  centuries  b.c.  They  are  more 
moral  than  religious,  and  the  following 
is  a specimen  of  the  high-toned  wit 
which  has  made  them  semi-classical  : 

“ His  Excellency  Li  asked  my  age.  I replied, 

‘ Minus  fifty.’  He  exclaimed,  ‘ Oh  ! does  your  re- 
ligion regard  plus  as  minus  ? ’ ‘No,’  said  I ; ‘ fifty 

years  have  gone,  I know  not  where,  and  I cannot 
say  that  I possess  them.’  He  wondered  at  this, 
but  I said  : ‘ Were  you  to  have  deposited  fifty 

measures  of  corn  in  a granary,  or  fifty  ingots  of 
silver  in  a sack,  then  taken  them  out  and  used  them 
all,  would  you  not  be  minus  them  ? And  every 
month  and  year  that  passes  is  a month  or  year  gone 
as  the  grain  or  as  the  silver.  . . ” 

The  matter  in  these  works  more  re- 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  6i 

sembles  that  in  Seneca’s  Epistles  (with 
which  he  doubtless  was  familiar)  than 
any  other  writing  of  the  West.  Says  a 
modern  Jesuit  Father  ^ : 

“ It  was  owing  to  his  scientific  knowledge  that  Ricci 
won  the  favour  and  esteem  of  the  Chinese.^  His 
successors  retained  them  by  the  same  means.  Among 
them,  two  are  specially  famous : Schaal  and  Verbiest. 

Adam  Schaal  von  Bell  (1601-1666)  reached  the  Adam  Schaal. 
country  in  1622.  He  first  settled  at  Si-an,  in  Shansi 
province,  but  was  summoned  to  Court  to  reform 
the  imperial  calendar,  with  James  Rho.  He  was 
appointed  president  of  the  Board  of  Astronomy  and 
Mathematics.  The  emperor  Ch‘ung  Chen  (the  last 
of  the  Mings)  held  him  in  great  esteem,  and  when 
that  prince  succumbed  (by  suicide)  in  the  catas- 
trophe of  the  Ming  Dynasty,  the  new  emperor  of 
the  present  reigning  house  maintained  him  in  the 
same  honourable  position.  Schaal  obtained  an  im- 
perial decree  securing  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel 
throughout  the  empire,  and  guaranteeing  protection 
for  converts.  Thanks  to  this  favour,  100,000  Chris- 
tians were  received  into  the  Church  in  the  short 
space  of  fourteen  years.” 

Here  again  no  speed-limit.  Would  Exceeding  the 
it  be  unkind  to  suggest  that  “ 100,000 

1 L.  Richard,  Comprehensive  Geography  of  the 
Chinese  Empire. 

* To  this,  however,  one  of  his  co-religionists  has 
added  : “ The  kings  found  in  him  a man  full  of 
complaisance  ; the  pagans  a minister  who  accommo- 
dated himself  to  their  superstitions.” 


**  Persecutions/' 


62  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Chinese  ” would  read  more  eorreetly 
than  “ 100,000  Christians  ” ? Were  they 
indeed  Christianised  before  entering  the 
Chureh  ? Were  all  of  them  ever  so, 
exeept  so  far  as  the  rite  of  baptism 
might  be  regarded  as  making  them  so  ? 
Would  it  not  have  been  far  better  poliey 
in  thfe  long-run  to  have  only  received 
the  absolutely  genuine  believers  whose 
belief  was  the  one  thing  with  them  ? 
The  teachings  of  missionary  history 
in  China  certainly  look  in  that  direction. 


“ Notwithstanding  the  Imperial  favour  in  Peking, 
the  native  converts  had  nevertheless  to  suffer  many 
persecutions  throughout  the  provinces.  They  did 
not  cease,  however,  to  increase  in  number.” 


Any  Church  in  China  that  is  composed 
of  heterogeneous  masses  of  men  who 
have,  many  of  them,  joined  it  in  order 
to  get  a foreign  backing  in  the  law- 
courts  in  connection  with  the  old  family- 
feuds,  or  more  recent  quarrels,  is  sure 
to  report  “ many  persecutions.”  Many 
disturbances,  certainly ; but  if  the  mis- 
sionary be  sufficiently  in  favour  with 
the  officials,  the  “ persecution  ” may 
be  of  non-members  by  these  hastily 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  63 

received  members  themselves  ! This 
is  popularly  affirmed  in  every  county  of 
the  empire  concerning  a section  of  the 
membership  of  that  Church  which  now 
reckons  in  China  (1908)  about  one 
million  believers.’’ 

“ Verbiest  (1623-1688)  entered  the  country  in  1659.  Ferdinand 
Schaal  ordered  him  to  come  to  Peking  to  assist  him  Verbiest. 
in  astronomical  labours.  He,  too,  became  President 
of  the  Board  of  Mathematics,  and  the  emperor 
K'ang  Hsi  showed  him  the  most  sincere  friendship. 

When  he  died,  the  Board  of  Rites  prescribed  the 
honours  to  be  paid  him,  and  his  funeral  was  carried 
out  at  the  expense  of  the  State.  The  emperor 
wrote  his  eulogium,  and  had  it  engraved  on  his 
tombstone.” 

Three  remarkably  fine  men  were 
Fathers  Ricci,  Schaal,  and  Verbiest ; 
and  the  two  last  were  exceedingly 
happy  in  being  at  the  Court  of  the  en- 
lightened emperor  K‘ang  Hsi,  “ the 
greatest  of  the  Manchus.”  K‘ang  Hsi, 
however,  was  too  young  (eight  years 
old)  when  he  came  to  the  throne  (in 
1662)  to  do  anything  more  than  save  the 
life  of  Schaal,  who  had  been  his  tutor, 
and  who  had  been  thrown  into  prison 
by  regents  jealous  of  the  favours  that 
had  been  shown  him.  At  the  age  of 


Troubles, 


64  The  Call  of  Cathay 

thirteen  the  vigorous  young  prince  dis- 
solved the  regency,  assumed  the  power 
himself,  and  used  it  right  well  till  his 
death  in  1723. 

But  troubles  were  brewing  for  the 
Jesuit  Fathers  in  this  reign.  Dom- 
inican and  Franciscan  missionaries  ar- 
rived in  1630,  and  reported  their  doings 
unfavourably  to  Rome.  Then  came 
Cardinal  Tournon,  who  in  China,  as  in 
India,  issued  a decree  denouncing  the 
Jesuits,  with  the  result  that  he  perished 
in  a Portuguese  prison  in  Macao.  Father 
Ripa,  who  arrived  in  1710,  reported 
unfavourably  on  the  character  of  the 
work  done.  He  says  that  500  mission- 
aries had  come  out  since  1580,  but  that 

“ they  could  not  produce  any  satisfactory  results, 
in  consequence  of  the  formidable  barrier  of  the  lan- 
guage, which,  up  to  that  time,  none  had  been  able 
to  sm’mount  so  as  to  make  himself  understood  of  the 
people  at  large.” 

This  stricture  upon  the  Jesuit  and 
other  orders  of  Roman  Catholic  mis- 
sionaries reads  strangely  ! For  spoken 
Chinese,  apart  from  the  characters  of 
either  spoken  dialects  or  the  wen-li  of 
the  books,  is  by  no  means  a difficult 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  65 

language.  Our  missionaries  are  all  of 
them  fairly  fluent  at  the  end  of  a year, 
if  with  a limited  vocabulary.  One 
would  think  that  Father  Ripa  was  in- 
dulging in  special  pleading  for  the 
college  for  young  Chinese  that  he  wished 
to  start  at  Naples,  and  afterwards  did. 

But  the  great  storm  burst  against  all 
the  Romish  missionaries  on  the  death 
of  K‘ang  Hsi.  His  son,  ascending  the 
throne  under  the  title  of  Yung  Cheng, ^ 
received  several  of  the  missionaries  in 
audience,  but  did  not  allow  them  to 
say  a word  while  he  read  to  them  a 
carefully  prepared  speech,  as  follows  : 

“The  late  Emperor,  my  father,  after  having  in* 
structed  me  during  forty  years,  chose  me  in  prefer- 
ence to  any  of  my  brothers  to  succeed  him  on  the 
throne.  I make  it  one  of  my  first  objects  to  imitate 
him,  and  to  depart  in  nothing  from  his  manner  of 
government.  Some  European  missionaries  in  the 
province  of  Fukien  have  shown  a wish  to  destroy  our 
laws,  and  they  have  been  a cause  of  trouble  to  the 
people.  It  is  my  duty  to  provide  a remedy  for  this 
disorder.  . . . Eicci  came  to  China  in  the  first  year 

^ The  personal  name  of  the  emperor  is  always 
sacred,  and  is  never  the  name  by  which  his  reign  is 
called.  That  is  always  a felicitous  motto,  as  Kuang 
Hsii  (Continued  Brightness)  for  the  late  emperor, 
whose  personal  name  was  Tsai  Then. 


The  Storm 
Bursts. 


3 


66 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

of  Wan  Li  (1573-1619).  I will  not  touch  upon  what 
the  Chinese  (the  Chinese  Dynasty)  did  at  that  time, 
for  I am  in  no  way  responsible  for  it.  But  then 
you  were  few  in  numbers.  In  fact  there  were  only 
one  or  two  of  you,  and  you  had  not  your  people  and 
churches  in  every  province.  It  was  only  in  my 
father’s  reign  that  churches  were  raised  on  all  hands, 
and  that  your  doctrines  spread  with  rapidity.  I 
saw  these  things  then  clearly  enough,  but  dared 
say  nothing  on  the  subject.  But  if  you  knew  how  to 
beguile  my  father,  do  not  hope  to  be  able  to  deceive 
me  in  the  same  manner.  You  wish  that  all  the 
Chinese  should  become  your  converts,  but  in  that 
event  what  would  become  of  us  ? Should  we  not 
soon  be  merely  the  subjects  of  your  kings  ? Already 
the  converts  you  have  made  recognise  nobody  but 
you,  and  in  a time  of  upset  would  listen  to  no  voice 
but  yours.  I know  that  at  present  we  have  nothing 
to  fear ; but  when  foreign  ships  shall  come  in  their 
thousands  and  tens  of  thousands,  then  it  may  be  that 
some  disaster  will  ensue.  China  has  on  the  north 
the  empire  of  the  Russians,  which  is  not  to  be  des- 
pised ; and  on  the  south  {sic)  are  the  Europeans  and 
their  kingdoms,  which  are  still  more  considerable.  . . . 
The  Czar’s  ambassador  solicited  our  permission  for 
Russians  to  establish  factories  for  commerce  in  all 
the  provinces.  His  request  was  refused,  and  trade 
only  allowed  at  Peking  or  at  Kiachta,  on  the  frontier 
of  the  Kalka  country.  I permit  you  to  reside  here 
and  at  Canton,  as  long  as  you  give  no  cause  for 
complaint  ; but  if  any  should  arise,  I will  not  allow 
you  to  remain  either  here  or  at  Canton.  . . . 

“ Do  not  imagine,  in  conclusion,  that  I have  nothing 
against  you,  or  on  the  other  hand  that  I wish  to 
oppress  you.  My  sole  care  is  to  rule  the  empire  well, 
and  to  this  I apply  myself  from  morning  till  evening.” 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  67 

Whether  the  above  utterance  was  too  ^poiicy 
severe  or  not,  it  will  be  seen  to  have 
been  the  utterance  of  a level-headed  and 
far-seeing  monarch.  Powers  huge  and 
well  armed,  represented,  alas  ! by  pirates 
as  well  as  missionaries,  loomed  on  the 
horizon.  China  could  not  cope  with 
them ; she  could  but  try  to  regulate 
their  representatives,  and  delimit  their 
sphere  of  political  influence,  for  she  saw 
that  Jesuit  methods  were  not  free  from 
that.  And  in  this  utterance  of  Yung 
Cheng  we  have  a key  to  the  policy  of 
China’s  rulers  towards  missionaries  and 
merchants — right  on  to  1900  as  far  as 
missionaries  have  been  concerned,  and 
up  to  the  present  (in  the  shutting- down 
of  concessions)  as  far  as  Western  mer- 
chants are  concerned  : a policy  of 
delimitation,  if  not  always  of  expulsion. 

Edicts  were  put  forth  in  1706  and  Romanism  m 
1720,  to  the  effect  that  “as  the  Papal 
decrees  were  contrary  to  the  usages  of 
the  empire,  the  ‘ Heaven-lord  religion  ’ 
could  not  subsist  there.”  And  now 
that  Imperial  patronage  was  reversed 
into  Imperial  disfavour,  multitudes  of 
the  converts  recanted  ; hundreds  of 


68 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

churches  were  destroyed  by  mobs, 
under  the  cognisance  of  the  officials ; 
the  property  of  wealthy  converts  was 
confiscated,  and  all  who  kept  the  faith 
(and  these  were  still  many)  were  sub- 
jected to  severe  persecution.  Yet  here 
was  the  opportunity  for  the  Romish 
Church,  if  its  leaders  had  but  known 
it,  to  nurture  that  faithful  “ remnant  ” 
by  prayer  and  supplication,  that  so  it 
might  become  the  nucleus  of  a Church 
throughly  purged.  Some  undaunted 
missionaries  did  endeavour  to  penetrate 
the  interior — were  caught,  punished, 
banished,  and  in  some  cases  put  to  death. 
But  as  this  severity  relaxed  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  nineteenth  century,  we 
find  all  the  old  methods  of  incautious 
ingathering  asserting  themselves  (doubt- 
less from  zeal,  and  a sacerdotal  view  of 
the  efficacy  of  the  Sacraments),  and  these 
methods  have  continued  to  this  day. 

Position  To'day.  In  1906  there  were  1,773  priests  in 
China — Jesuits,  Franciscans,  Vincentians, 
and  priests  of  the  Belgian,  German, 
Milanese,  Parisian,  and  Spanish  foreign 
missions  ; 5,681  churches  and  chapels  ; 
and  952,935  baptised  converts. 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  69 

Here  is  a study  of  comparative 
methods.  The  Nestorians  secured  Im- 
perial favour  as  religious  teachers,  and 
vastly  modified  the  Buddhism  of  the 
Far  East,  but  apparently  suppressed 
the  Cross  in  their  religious  teachings. 
The  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  (heroes 
in  zeal  for  their  Church  many  of  them) 
began  to  reside  in  China  under  Imperial 
favour,  made  certain  compromises  with 
Chinese  customs  so  as  to  make  entrance 
-into  the  Church  easy,  and  while  under 
Imperial  favour  offered  certain  political 
advantages  to  their  adherents  (which 
made  the  officials  regard  those  converts 
practically  as  foreign  subjects),  gained 
large  ingatherings,  but  with  them  offi- 
cial suspicion,  which,  after  the  reversal 
of  all  their  privileges,  became  positive 
antagonism.  Was  there  room  iii  China 
for  other  methods  than  these  ? The 
next  chapter  will  show. 


A Study  in 
Missionary 
Methods, 


70 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


TABLE  OF  NESTORIAN  AND  CATHOLIC 
MISSIONS  IN  CHINA 

Doubtful  Period. 

1st  century : A tradition  states  that  the  Gospel  was 
carried  to  China  “by  the  first  teachers 
of  Christianity.”  The  breviary  of  the 
Malabar  Church  and  the  Syrian  Canon 
both  record  that  St.  Thomas  preached 
the  Gospel  to  the  Chinese.  These 
statements  are  unsupported  by  evi- 
dence, and  are  rejected  by  scholars. 

A.D.  300  : Arnobius  speaks  of  Christian  deeds  done 
among  the  Seres  (Chinese).  It  is 
probable  that  this  refers  to  a possible 
visit  of  Mani,  an  heretical  teacher, 
to  China  in  the  third  century. 

Nestorian  Period. 

A.D.  505  : Probably  the  first  Nestorian  missionaries 
reached  China  about  this  time. 

551  ; Records  exist  stating  that  Nestorian 
monks  took  silkworms’  eggs  from 
China  to  Constantinople  at  this  date. 

635  : Olopun  and  a band  of  Nestorian  priests 
reached  China,  and  were  received  at 
Court.  Christianity  received  Imperial 
sanction,  and  the  Scriptures  were 
translated  into  Chinese. 

650-683 : The  Emperor  Kao  Tsung  caused 
monasteries  to  be  built  “ in  every 
prefecture  of  the  empire.” 

781  : The  “ Nestorian  Tablet  ” erected  at  Sianfu 
(Shensi). 

841  : Edict  for  the  suppression  of  Nestorian 
and  Buddhist  monasteries, 


Story  of  Early  Missionary  Work  71 

13th  century:  Marco  Polo  found  numbers  of  Nes- 
torians  and  Nestorian  churches  in 
China. 

Early  Romish  Missions. 

A.D.  1246-7  : Papal  Mission,  led  by  John  de  Plano 


1271  : 

Carpini,  reached  the  Court  of  the 
Tartar  Khan.  It  is  uncertain 

whether  it  got  into  China. 

Kublai  Khan  wrote  to  the  Pope  for  a 
hundred  Catholic  literati. 

1303  : 

1314: 

John  de  Monte  Corvino  reached  Peking. 
Oderic  de  Friuli  left  Europe  for  India 
and  China.  He  spent  three  years 
in  Peking,  and  returned  to  Pisa. 

A.D.  1552  : 

Jesuit  Missions. 

St.  Francis  Xavier  died  at  the  island 
of  Shang-ch‘uan,  while  attempting 
to  enter  China. 

1583  : 

1601: 

Matteo  Ricci  arrived  in  South  China. 
Ricci  settled  in  Peking.  Died  there  in 
1610. 

1622: 

Adam  Schaal  reached  China,  working  first 
at  Sian,  and  afterwards  at  Peking. 

1659: 

Ferdinand  Verbiest  arrived  in  China. 

A.D.  1630: 

Later  Romish  Missions. 

Arrival  of  Dominican  and  Franciscan 

1710  : 
1724  : 

missionaries. 

Father  Ripa  reached  China. 

Edict  of  Yung  Cheng  against  Romish 
missions.  From  this  time  Christianity 
was  under  the  ban,  until  the  treaties 
of  1858  expressly  sanctioned  both 
Romish  and  Protestant  mission  work. 

72 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  see  what  we  may  learn 
as  to  missionary  methods  from  the  Nestorian  and 
Roman  efforts  to  evangelise  China. 

1.  What  is  the  net  result  of  Nestorian  Missions  in 
China  ? 

2.  How  do  you  account  for  this  failure  ? 

3.  Why  have  Roman  Catholic  Missions  been  more 
successful  than  the  Nestorian  efforts  ? 

4.  Wherein  lay  the  strength  and  weakness  of  the 
Romish  methods  ? 


REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

Smith,  A.  H. — The  Uplift  of  China  (pages  113-34). 
Beach,  Harlan  P. — Dawn  on  the  Hills  of  T^ang 
(pages  81-94). 

Broomhall,  Marshall. — The  Chinese  Empire  (pages 
5-11,  and  Appendix  III.). 

Ball,  J.  Dyer. — Things  Chinese  (article  on 
“Missions”). 


By  permission  of  the]  \_London  Missionary  Society. 

ROBERT  MORRISON. 


[p.  73 


CHAPTER  III 


A CENTURY  OF  PROTESTANT  MISSIONS 
IN  CHINA 

Within  a month  of  the  formation  of  the  The  Stimulus 
British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  in 
1804,  its  thoughts  were  directed  to 
China.  For,  a few  years  before  that, 
a Chinese  manuscript  was  discovered 
in  the  British  Museum,  which  was  re- 
ported to  be  a translation  of  the  New 
Testament.  It  was,  however,  a harmony 
of  the  Gospels,  the  Acts,  and  St.  Paul’s 
epistles,  apparently  made  from  the 
Vulgate  by  Roman  Catholic  mission- 
aries. When  it  was  further  known  that 
its  reproduction  would  cost  two  guineas 
a copy,  and  that  there  was  no  way  open 
for  circulating  it  among  the  Chinese,  it 
was  resolved  not  to  attempt  its  publica- 
tion. In  the  providence  of  God,  however, 
that  manuscript  copy  of  the  Acts  was 
to  be  the  basis  of  the  first  Protestant 
missionary  publication  in  China  itself^ 

73  3* 


Robert 

Morrison. 


Reflections. 


74  The  Call  of  Cathay 

About  the  time  they  were  diseussing 
it,  God  was  working  in  the  heart  of 
Robert  Morrison,  a young  man  born  of 
Scottish  parents  at  Morpeth,  at  the 
beginning  of  1782.  Morrison  joined  the 
Presbyterian  Church  at  the  age  of 
fifteen,  studied  Latin,  Hebrew,  and 
theology  with  a minister  of  Newcastle, 
in  intervals  between  his  occupation  of 
shoe-last  maker,  at  eighteen,  and  in 
1802  became  a student  in  the  Inde- 
pendent Theological  Academy  at  Hox- 
ton.  Here  we  find  him  writing  some 
private  “ Reflections  ” : 

“Have  I tasted  and  seen  that  God  is  good?  What 
cords  of  infinite  love  have  caught  and  held  my 
heart  ? Say  then,  my  conscience,  as  thou  shalt 
answer  at  the  judgment  seat  of  God,  am  I taking 
honour  to  myself,  or  am  I called  of  God  as  was 
Aaron  ? Is  Christ  sending  me  and  laying  a necessity 
on  me  to  preach  the  Gospel  ? Is  He  breathing  on 
my  soul  and  causing  me  to  receive  the  Holy  Ghost  ? 
Is  He  enduing  me  with  deep  compassion  for  the 
souls  of  men  ? Have  I the  love  of  God  burning  in 
my  heart,  and  constraining  me  cheerfully  to  suffer 
poverty,  contempt,  and  hatred  of  all  men  for  Christ’s 
sake,  wilhng,  if  necessary,  to  risk  my  own  salvation 
in  winning  others  to  Christ  ? ” 

The  Lord  Himself  answered  these 
questions  in  him, — questions  that  every 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  75 

would-be  missionary  should  ask  himself. 

The  eall  to  mission  work  grew  stronger, 
and  again  he  writes  : 

“ Jesus,  I have  given  myself  up  to  Thy  service.  The  The  Call, 
question  is  where  shall  I serve  Thee  ? I conceive  it 
my  duty  to  go  where  labourers  are  most  needed. 

Leaning  on  His  love  I have  made  up  my  mind  to  for- 
sake all  and  follow  Him.” 

This  was  early  in  1804,  when  he 
offered  himself  to  the  Direetors  of  the 
London  Missionary  Soeiety.  Being  in 
touch  with  the  Bible  Society,  the  L.M.S. 
decided  to  send  him  to  China,  with  the 
special  task  of  acquiring  the  language 
so  as  to  translate  the  Scriptures.  Here 
is  an  early  instance  of  that  comity  and 
mutual  aid  which  has  become  such  a 
blessed  fact  in  modern  Protestant  mis- 
sions in  China. 

Morrison  began  to  prepare  for  China  Preparations, 
by  studying  medicine  and  astronomy, 
and  some  rudiments  of  the  Chinese 
language.  He  was  introduced  to  a 
Cantonese  named  Tong  Sam-tak,  from 
whom  he  took  lessons  in  writing  the 
Chinese  characters,  and  in  the  course 
of  a few  months  of  diligence  tran- 
scribed the  whole  of  the  Chinese  manu- 


Sails  for  China* 


Arrives  at 
Canton, 


76  The  Call  of  Cathay 

script  in  the  British  Museum,  as  well 
as  a Latin-Chinese  dictionary  lent  by 
the  Royal  Society. 

He  sailed  for  China  the  last  day  of 
January  1807,  but,  the  Chinese  being 
hostile  to  the  British  at  that  time,  he 
was  obliged  to  go  via  New  York,  where 
he  had  to  Avait  three  weeks  before  a 
ship  was  starting  eastward.  The  ship- 
owner said  to  him,  with  a sardonic  smile  : 
“ And  so,  Mr.  Morrison,  you  really 
expect  you  will  make  an  impression  on 
the  idolatry  of  the  great  Chinese  Em- 
pire ? ” “ No,  sir,”  replied  Morrison, 

with  more  than  his  usual  sternness, 
‘‘  but  I expect  God  will.” 

Two  hundred  and  eighteen  days  after 
setting  sail  from  London,  Morrison,  after 
a dangerous  voyage,  arrived  in  Canton 
on  September  7.  And  here  various 
difficulties  had  to  be  faced.  There  was 
the  Chinese  opposition  to  the  residence 
of  foreigners  ; a strict  prohibition  of 
any  Chinese  teaching  foreigners  the 
language — the  penalty  being  death  ; the 
jealous  opposition  of  Roman  Catholic 
priests  at  Macao  ; and  lastly,  the  regu- 
lations of  the  East  India  Company 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  77 

against  missionaries.  To  avoid  the 
latter  difficulty,  he  had  to  live  with  the 
American  merchants  and  pass  as  an 
American.  He  adopted  the  Chinese 
dress  and  food,  and  only  took  exercise 
in  the  evenings.  By  the  help  of  Sir 
George  Staunton  he  secured  three 
Chinese  teachers,  Roman  Catholics — one 
for  Cantonese,  one  for  ‘‘  mandarin,”  and 
one  for  wen-li.  In  1809  he  was  loosed 
from  some  of  his  difficulties  by  becom- 
ing translator  to  the  East  India  Com- 
pany at  a salary  of  £500  per  annum  ; 
he  also  married  the  daughter  of  an 
English  merchant.  As  residence  at 
either  Canton  or  Macao  was  difficult, 
he  retired  to  where  there  was  only  the 
heat  to  hamper  him,  and  where  Chinese 
traded  freely. 

In  1810  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  was  Bible  Transia- 
printed  in  Chinese  from  wooden  blocks 
(with  the  British  Museum  manuscript 
as  a basis)  ; in  1812  the  Gospel  of 
St.  Luke  ; in  1814  the  New  Testament 
was  completed  ; in  1817  a philological 
study  of  the  Chinese  language  (which 
gained  him  the  degree  of  D.D.  from 
Glasgow  University);  in  1818  the  whole 


Manifold 

Labours. 


78  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Bible  was  complete,  and  it  was  printed 
in  1821.  Here  is  a record  for  one  man 
in  the  strange  Chinese  language,  of 
which  William  Milne  wrote  in  1814  : 

“ To  acquire  Chinese  is  a work  for  men  of  bodies 
of  brass,  heads  of  oak,  hands  of  spring-steel,  eyes 
of  eagles,  hearts  of  apostles,  memories  of  angels,  and 
lives  of  Methuselah.” 

It  must,  however,  be  remembered 
that  this  was  a new-comer’s  early  im- 
pression, and  referred  to  the  complex 
task  of  talking  the  widely  different 
dialects  of  Cantonese  and  “ mandarin,” 
and  also  using  the  inexhaustible  literary 
wen-li  that  is  common  to  the  whole 
empire  among  its  scholars.^ 

William  Milne  had  arrived  in  1813, 
and  became  an  altogether  helpful  col- 
league, but  died  in  1822. 

^ Both  Cantonese  and  “ mandarin  ” can  be  written, 
and  are  used  for  Chinese  novels  and  for  translated 
Scriptures  and  tracts.  Wen-li  has  the  peculiarity 
of  never  having  been  spoken  ; it  is  a condensed  lan- 
guage for  the  eyes.  No  Chinese  scholar  would  under- 
stand another  if  he  read  wen-li  aloud,  beyond  a phrase 
here  and  there.  But  it  is  the  language  of  all  Chinese 
literature  and  of  modern  newspaper  articles ; and  it 
was  into  wen-li  that  Morrison  translated  the  Scriptures. 
For  a fine  style  in  wen-li  the  rewards  have  been 
mandarinships . 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  79 

Morrison  then  completed  his  monu- 
mental work,  the  Chinese-English  Dic- 
tionary, which  was  printed  by  the  East 
India  Company  at  the  cost  of  £15,000. 
He  also  wrote  various  tracts,  and  trans- 
lated the  Assembly’s  Shorter  Catechism 
and  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer.  On 
being  asked  why  he  did  the  latter,  he 
wrote  : “We  are  of  no  party,  we  recog- 
nise but  two  classes — those  who  fear 
God  and  those  who  do  not.”  Which, 
happily,  is  a growing  sentiment  among 
missionaries  in  China.  There  is  no 
place  in  the  world  where  there  is  less 
denominational  separation.  As  Bishop 
Westcott  once  remarked  : “As  far  as 
I see,  the  union  of  the  Churches  will 
begin  at  the  circumference  rather  than 
at  the  centre.” 

A mission  press  had  been  founded 
at  Malacca,  and  now  an  Anglo-Chinese 
college  was  founded  there,  Morrison 
giving  £1,000  at  the  start,  and  £100  a 
year  towards  its  expenses.  Another 
press  was  established  at  Batavia  in 
Java,  and  an  Anglo-Chinese  and  Malay 
College  at  Singapore.  A third  colleague 
had  arrived  in  1817^  Walter  Henry 


8o  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Medhurst,  who  had  received,  besides  a 
classical  and  theological  training,  that 
of  a practical  printer. 

In  1816  Morrison  accompanied  Lord 
Amherst’s  embassy  to  Peking  as  inter- 
preter, journeying  there  by  sea,  and 
returning  overland  through  Chihli, 
Shantung,  Kiangsu,  Kiangsi,  and  Kwang- 
tung  provinces — thus  surveying  the 
land  for  future  missionaries.  Both  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Milne  and  his  own  wife  having 
died,  and  his  own  health  being  low, 
he  returned  to  England  in  1823  for  two 
years,  being  welcomed  everywhere  by 
the  Churches,  and  by  learned  societies, 
and  being  received  at  Court  by  King 
George  IV.  But  everywhere  the  sal- 
vation of  China  was  his  life-quest.  As 
an  American  friend  of  his  put  it  : “ He 
is  not  like  some  whose  piety  is  still 
in  the  green  shoot;  his  has  the  bark 
on  ; his  mind  is  firm,  erect,  self-deter- 
mined.” 

One  instance  of  this  was  in  1812,  when 
the  Chinese  emperor  decreed  it  to  be  a 
capital  crime  for  Europeans  or  Chinese  to 
print  books  on  the  “ Foreign  Religion.” 
Morrison  wrote  : ‘‘  We  will  scrupulously 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  8i 

obey  Governments  as  far  as  their  de- 
crees do  not  oppose  what  is  required  by 
the  Almighty.  But  in  this  matter  I 
must  go  forward,  trusting  in  the 
Lord.” 

On  his  return  there  were  in  all  just 
ten  baptised  Chinese  converts  ; but, 
thanks  to  the  laxity  of  Chinese  executive 
in  the  provinces,  two  of  these  converts 
(one  of  them  Liang  A-fa)  itinerated  in- 
land from  Canton,  following  the  train 
of  the  Imperial  examiner,  to  the  vari- 
ous examination  centres,  gaining  access 
to  the  young  literati,  and  distributing 
more  than  7,000  tracts.  This  was  the  Attempting  to 
first  attempt  to  reach  the  brain  of 
China,  through  her  scholars — a task  since 
taken  up  by  the  Christian  Literature 
Society  for  China.  And  in  this  con- 
nection Morrison  wrote  in  1823  : “I 
have  been  twenty-five  years  in  China, 
and  am  beginning  to  see  the  work  pros- 
per. By  the  press  we  have  been  able 
to  scatter  knowledge  far  and  wide.” 

He  died  at  Canton,  August  1,  1843, 
and  was  buried  in  the  Protestant 
burial-ground  at  Macao. 

A little  before  this  the  first  English 


82 


The  War  of 
1840, 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

war  ^ with  China  had  taken  place,  as 
I.ord  Russell  said  : 


“ to  obtain  reparation  for  the  insults  and  injuries 
offered  to  Her  Majesty’s  Superintendent  and  Her 
Majesty’s  subjects  by  the  Chinese  Government ; to 
obtain  an  indemnification  for  merchants  for  losses 
of  property  . . . and  to  obtain  a certain  security 
. . . that  their  trade  and  commerce  be  maintained 
upon  a proper  footing.” 


^ This  was  what  is  commonly  called  the  “ first 
Opium  War,”  concerning  which  Lord  Morley,  in  his 
Life  of  Gladstone,  says  : “ The  Chinese  question  was  of 
the  simplest.  British  subjects  insisted  on  smuggling 
opium  into  China  in  the  teeth  of  Chinese  law.  The 
British  Agent  on  the  spot  began  the  war  against 
China  for  protecting  herself  against  these  malprac- 
tices.” 

Speaking  in  the  House  of  Commons  in  1840,  in 
a debate  on  this  war,  Gladstone  said  : “ They  gave 

you  notice  to  abandon  your  contraband  trade. 
When  they  found  you  would  not,  they  had  a right 
to  drive  you  from  their  coasts,  on  account  of  your 
persisting  in  this  infamous  and  atrocious  traffic. 
You  allowed  your  agent  to  aid  and  abet  those  who 
were  carrying  on  that  trade.  ...  A war  more  unjust 
in  its  origin,  a war  more  calculated  to  cover  this 
country  with  disgrace,  I do  not  know,  and  I have 
not  read  of.” 

The  Times  (Dec.  3,  1842)  said  in  a leading  article  : 
“We  owe  some  moral  compensation  to  China  for 
pillaging  her  towns  and  slaughtering  her  citizens 
in  a quarrel  which  would  not  have  arisen  if  we  had 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  83 

The  expedition  of  four  thousand  troops 
arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  Canton 
River  in  June  1840,  with  the  motto 
‘‘  China  must  either  bend  or  break,” — 
four  thousand  soldiers  speaking  thus  of 
an  empire  of  four  hundred  millions  ! But 
that  is  the  motto  of  the  four  thousand 
warriors  of  Emmanuel  to-day  in  that 
empire  of  four  hundred  millions,  op- 
posed by  principalities  and  powers,  the 
world-rulers  of  darkness ; a disparity 
all  the  more  evident  were  they  not  the 
prayer- warriors  of  God. 

The  forts  commanding  Canton  being 
all  taken  and  destroyed,  the  fleet  sailed 
north  to  the  mouth  of  the  Peiho,  to 
open  negotiations  with  the  Court,  which 
seemed  likely  to  be  favourable,  until  the 
fleet  departed,  when  China  armed  for 
resistance.  The  capture  of  Amoy  and 
Chusan  not  being  sufficient,  there  was 

not  been  guilty  of  this  national  crime  [i.e.  the  im- 
portation of  opium].” 

The  Spectator  (Oct.  29,  1842),  declared  that  it 
was  “ impossible  to  read  the  accounts  of  the  military 
operations  in  China  without  shame  amd  disgust.  . . . 
Is  it  a sign  of  morality  that  we  do  all  this  in  order 
that  a poisonous  drug  may  be  smuggled  into  the 
markets  of  China  ? ” 


84  The  Call  of  Cathay 


The  Opening 
of  the  Ports. 


The  Story  of 
the  Century. 


fighting  and  victory  for  the  English  at 
the  mouth  of,  and  some  hundred  miles  or 
so  up,  the  Yangtse.  And  at  length  the 
new  Viceroy  of  Canton,  Nu  Kien,  ad- 
mitted that  ‘‘  the  English  at  Canton  had 
been  exposed  to  insults  and  extortions 
for  a series  of  years,”  and  with  two  other 
Commissioners  drew  up  a memorial  for 
the  granting  of  indemnity,  partly  in 
money,  partly  consisting  of  the  cession 
of  Hong  Kong,  and  the  opening  to  trade 
of  Shanghai,  Ningpo,  Amoy,  and  Foo- 
chow. Which  meant  that  these  ports 
were  soon  to  beeome  centres  of  mission- 
ary activity — whereby  hearts  would 
“ bend  or  break  ” at  the  coming  of  the 
Crueified. 

In  dealing  with  the  progress  which 
followed,  the  subject  might  easily  take 
the  form  of  a lesson  in  geography,  with 
a list  of  names  and  dates  added.  And 
certain  details  of  this  nature  may  have 
to  be  given.  But  the  reader’s  imagina- 
tion must  be  stirred,  first  and  last, 
to  clothe  all  these  dry-bone  details 
with  warm,  living  flesh.  For  the  es- 
sence of  the  matter  is  that  the  Throned 
One  Who  has  been  responsible  for  all 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  85 

that  was  true  in  China’s  ancient  re- 
ligion and  moral  precepts,  and  for  all 
that  was  good  in  China’s  people — the 
motherly  love  of  mothers,  the  parental 
solicitude  of  fathers,  the  filial  response, 
the  conscience  which  knew  there  was 
a heavenly  standard,  and  felt  the  dis- 
grace of  moral  failure, — this  God  of 
righteousness  and  love.  Who  manifested 
Himself  in  West  Asia  long,  long  ago, 
was  now  stirring  this  or  that  heart  with 
heroism,  to  take  up  the  burden  of  East 
Asian  needs  ; going  in  person  to  mani- 
fest Christ  the  Lord  there  ; or,  with 
none  the  less  heroism,  giving  of  their 
substance  and  soul-energies,  continuing 
faithful  in  prayer  at  home ; praying 
into  China  spiritual  perceptions  of  the 
message,  moral  conviction  of  sin  against 
the  All-Father,  bringing  the  Cross  and 
its  Sacrifice  within  range  of  vision, 
arousing  penitent  faith,  and  that 
‘‘  charity  which  edifieth,”  or  rather 
a grasp  of  that  Love-force,  that  God- 
force,  which  upbuildeth  the  desolations 
of  many  generations.  This  is  the 
essence  of  the  story  of  the  century  and 
more  since  Morrison  arrived  in  China. 


More  Literary 
Workers, 


Karl  Gutzlaff, 


86  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Geography,  year-dates,  names  of  men 
and  women,  and  of  the  various  de- 
partments of  the  one  great  Missionary 
Society  to  China,  from  various  lands, — 
these  are  details,  mere  details,  and 
wearisome  to  the  uninitiated  reader, 
but  glowing  with  heaven’s  own  poetry 
when  read  and  understood  in  their 
setting  as  landmarks  in  the  coming  of 
the  Redeemer  to  rule  where  He  has  re- 
deemed, even  in  vast  and  soul- desolate 
China. 

Shortly  before  Morrison  died  there 
arrived  in  China  Dr.  Bridgman  from  the 
United  States,  who  was  by  and  by  to 
start  the  valuable  “ Chinese  Reposi- 
tory,” to  open  up  the  mind  and  heart 
of  China  to  missionaries  and  students  ; 
and  Dr.  Wells  Williams,  who,  among 
other  tasks,  was  to  produce  a “ Syllabic 
Dictionary  ” condensed  from,  and  an 
improvement  on,  that  of  Morrison,  with 
much  original  work — a volume  which 
has  been  the  “guide,  philosopher,  and 
friend  ” of  most  Protestant  missionaries 
now  on  the  field.  Then,  before  Morri- 
son died,  Karl  Gutzlaff,  of  the  Nether- 
lands Missionary  Society,  surveyed  the 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  87 

coasts  of  China,  in  seven  journeys, 
giving  the  West  a necessary  insight  into 
many  items  of  geography,  as  well  as 
being  himself  a pioneer  along  the  various 
ports  visited.  He  became  indirectly 
instrumental  in  the  formation  of  the 
Chinese  Evangelistic  Society  which  sent 
out  Mr.  Hudson  Taylor  (1856),  the 
founder  of  the  China  Inland  Mission. 

He  also  published  works  in  seven  lan- 
guages besides  the  Chinese. 

In  the  year  that  Morrison  died  Dr.  The  Beginning 
Peter  Parker,  of  the  American  Board, 
landed  in  Canton  (to  be  followed  by 
Dr.  Lockhart,  the  first  British  medical 
missionary),  and  opened  the  first  mis- 
sionary hospital  in  China — the  first  of 
about  20T  hospitals,  besides  some  292 
dispensaries,  up  to  1910.  Dr.  Legge,  Dr.  Legge. 
of  the  London  Missionary  Society  (in 
Malacca  since  1839),  became  the  Prin- 
cipal of  the  Anglo- Chinese  College  on  its 
removal  to  Hong  Kong,  and  produced  his 
monumental  work,  a translation  of  the 
Chinese  Classics,  with  scholarly  com- 
ments ; thus  opening  up  the  most  revered 
literature  of  China  to  missionary  students 
and  Western  readers. 


88 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

During  the  eighteen  years  following 
the  treaty  of  Nanking  (1842),  some 
seventeen  soeieties  commenced  work 
in  China,  with  about  160  workers. 
TheTaiping  From  1850  to  1864  the  Taiping  Rebels, 
Rebellion.  possessed  of  a smattering  of  Christian 
truth,  did  their  utmost  to  stamp  out 
idolatry  on  the  one  hand,  and  to  restore 
China  to  the  Chinese — that  is,  to  the 
Taiping  leaders — on  the  other.  Their 
chief  force,  as  far  as  Central  China  was 
concerned,  was  spent  by  the  end  of 
1855  ; but  they  were  still  strong  on 
the  lower  Yangtse  Valley,  with  Nanking 
as  their  capital,  until  they  were  de- 
stroyed by  the  aid  of  General  Gordon 
ten  years  later  ; not  before  they  had 
become  utterly  corrupt  in  manners,  and 
blasphemers  of  the  religion  they  had 
professed  to  hold,  in  setting  up  ‘‘  Per- 
fect Peace  \T'ai-pHng\  and  the  King- 
dom of  Heaven  ” in  China.  Meanwhile 

The  Arrow  England’s  second  war  ^ with  China  broke 
War.^ 

^ Concerning  this  war,  the  British  commander 
sent  to  conduct  it  (Lord  Elgin),  wrote : “ That 

wretched  Arrow  affair  is  a scandal  to  us.  Nothing 
could  be  more  contemptible  than  the  origin  of  our 
existing  quarrel.  I thought  bitterly  of  those  who, 
for  the  most  selfish  objects,  are  trampling  underfoot 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  89 

out,  arising  from  the  seizure  by  the 
Chinese  of  a boat  which  was  flying 
the  British  flag,  unauthorised,  while 
smuggling  opium/  The  violent  insult  to 
the  British  flag  (instead  of  diplomatic 

this  ancient  civilisation.”  And  again : “I  never 
felt  so  much  ashamed  of  myseh  in  my  life.  ...  I 
feel  I am  earning  for  myself  a place  in  the  Litany 
immediately  after  ‘ plague,  pestilence,  and  famine  ’ 
[i.e.  battle  and  murder].” 

The  House  of  Commons  by  a majority  condemned 
the  war,  and  Palmerston  dissolved  Parliament. 

^ The  ravages  of  the  opium  cm*se  have  been  so 
often  described  that  nothing  need  be  added  here, 
except  to  remind  the  reader  that  on  September  20, 
1906,  the  Chinese  Government  issued  the  following 
decree  : “ Almost  the  whole  of  China  has  been 

flooded  with  the  opimn-poison.  Smokers  of  opium 
have  wasted  their  time,  neglected  their  employment, 
spoiled  their  constitutions,  and  ruined  their  families  ; 
and  thus  for  some  tens  of  years  China  has  presented 
a pictme  of  increasing  poverty  and  weakness.  It 
arouses  our  deep  indignation  even  to  speak  of  the 
matter.  We  are  now  ardently  determined  to  make 
China  powerful,  and  it  falls  to  us  to  urge  the  people 
on  to  reformation,  that  they  may  realise  the  evil, 
pluck  out  this  deep-seated  cancer,  and  follow  the 
ways  of  health  and  peace.  We  therefore  decree 
that,  within  the  limit  of  ten  years,  this  harmful 
foreign  muck  be  fully  and  entirely  cleansed  away.” 
Since  this  there  have  been  more  or  less  sincere  efforts 
to  reduce  the  consumption  of  opium  and  cultivation 
of  the  poppy,  and  at  any  rate  the  rising  generation 
will  be  deterred  from  beginning  the  habit. 


90  The  Call  of  Cathay 

representations  with  regard  to  the 
smuggler)  was  considered  material  for 
military  reprisals.  China  was  again 
defeated ; a treaty  was  signed  with 
Great  Britain,  and,  for  other  reasons, 
other  treaties  were  concluded  with  four 
other  Powers,  with  the  total  result  that 
the  following  ports  were  declared  open 
to  Western  commerce  : 

Under  Treaty  of  Nanking,  1842. 

Canton,  Amoy,  Foochow,  Ningpo,  and  Shang- 
hai. 

Under  Treaty  of  Tientsin,  1858.  (Ratified  1860.) 
Newchwang,  Chefoo,  Swatow,  Kiungchow  in 
Hainan,  and  Taiwan  and  Tamsui  in  Formosa. 

Under  French  Treaty,  1860. 

Tientsin. 

Under  the  German  Treaty,  1861. 

Chinkiang,  Kiukiang,  and  Hankow. 

In  addition  to  this,  there  was  given 
to  missionaries  (1860)  the  right  to 
travel,  with  passport,  throughout  the 
eighteen  provinces,  and  (by  a clause 
inserted  in  the  Chinese  text  of  the  French 
treaty)  permission  “ to  rent  and  pur- 
chase land  in  the  provinces,  and  to  erect 
buildings  thereon  at  pleasure.”  ^ 

1 “ The  French  text,  which  was  the  final  autho- 
rity, did  not  contain  this  clause — it  having  been 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  91 

The  gate  into  China’s  interior  eannot 
be  said  to  have  been  very  gently  opened, 
or  indeed  opened  without  a measure  of 
guile  as  well  as  foree,  but  being  thus 
opened,  the  duty  and  privilege  of  the 
Protestant  Church  was  apparent.  Nor, 
it  should  be  remembered,  was  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church  slow  to  take 
advantage  of  the  new  openings  and 
privileges,  adding,  in  many  cases,  hos- 
pitals and  benevolent  institutions  to  its 
more  ordinary  propaganda  ; aiming  as 
. before  at  large  ingatherings,  but  with 
its  eyes  set  rather  on  the  second  or  third 
generation  than  the  first,  as  with 
Protestants ; and — another  point  of 

difference — managing  to  finance  its  mis- 
sions in  China  on  the  spot,  by  the  ex- 
ercise of  keen  business  transactions, 
land  investments,  and  stock  and  share 
trafficking,  so  that  its  work  in  China 
has  been  for  a long  time  almost  entirely 
free  from  home  support. 

Before  the  treaty  of  Tientsin  had  been  Wuchang- 
ratified  at  Peking  in  1860,  William 

surreptitiously  inserted  by  one  of  the  French  priests 
in  the  Chinese  text,  an  action  not  unnaturally  severely 
•criticised  ” (Broomhall), 


92  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Muirhead,  of  the  L.M.S.,  was  allowed  to 
accompany  the  British  squadron  up 
the  Yangtse,  and  gained  a first  sight  of 
that  Wu-Han  centre  of  which  Du  Halde 
the  Jesuit  author  (eighteenth  century) 
says  : 

“ Vu-chang  is  as  it  were  the  Center  of  the  whole 
Empire,  and  the  Place  from  whence  it  is  easiest  to 
keep  a Communication  with  the  rest  of  the  Pro- 
vinces. This  City  in  conjunction  with  Hanyang,^ 
(which  is  separated  from  it  only  by  the  Yang-tse- 
kyang  and  the  little  river  Han)  forms  the  most  popu- 
lous and  frequented  place  in  all  China.  The  city 
itself  may  be  compared  for  Size  to  Paris  ; Hanyang 
(one  of  whose  Suburbs  extends  to  the  Point  where 
the  Rivers  Han  and  Yang-tse-kyang  meet)  is  not 
inferior  to  the  most  populous  Cities  in  France^  such 
for  Instance  as  Lyons  or  Roan  ; add  to  this  an  in- 
credible Number  of  great  and  small  Barks  . . . never 
reckoned  less  than  eight  or  ten  thousand  . . . and 
should  one  from  an  Eminence  view  this  vast  Extent 
of  Ground,  covered  with  Houses,  he  would  either 
not  believe  his  Eyes,  or  own  that  he  saw  the  finest 
Prospect  of  the  Kind  in  the  World.” 

In  consequence  of  William  Muirhead’s 
report,  Griffith  John  and  R.  Wilson 
were  sent  up  in  1861  to  found  a 
Hankow  mission.  Meanwhile,  from  the 
Wesleyan  Mission,  Canton,  Josiah  Cox 

^ Until  the  last  decade  Hankow  was  governed  from 
Hanyang,  and  was  thus  regarded  as  a sriburb  of 
that  city  by  Du  Halde, 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  93 

being  in  England  on  furlough  in  1860, 
received  an  official  letter  from  one 
of  the  Taiping  chiefs  at  Nanking, 
inviting  him  to  come  there  as  chaplain. 
But,  finding  that  extremely  inadvisable, 
he  went  up  to  Hankow  in  February 
1862,  living  for  some  time  with  Griffith 
John,  until  they  had  arranged  to  divide 
the  great  mart  between  them.  And 
as  Mr.  Cox  spoke  Cantonese  (quite 
unintelligible  in  Hupeh),  Griffith  John 
added  to  all  his  other  kindnesses  the 
surpassing  one  of  allowing  him  to 
take  over  his  own  ablest  convert,  Chii 
Shao-an,  as  native  preacher.^  It  is 
such  deeds  as  this  which  testify  so 
finely  to  the  fact  that  there  is  but 
one  Protestant  Mission  to  China,  under 
varied  names.  And  in  years  to  come 
David  Hill  was  to  labour  in  Shansi, 
during  and  after  the  great  famine  of 
1877-9,  and  was  then  to  hand  over 
the  results  of  his  labours  to  the  China 
Inland  Mission  to  develop,  while  he 
went  back  to  take  (what  was  to  him) 
a wearying  Chairmanship  in  the  Wu- 
Han  centre. 


See  also  Chapter  V. 


94 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

Reinforcements  The  various  little  bands  sent  out  by 
and  Beginnings.  respeetive  home  Churches,  from 

England  and  America,  having  gradually 
invested  the  new  Treaty  Ports,  resi- 
dence was  secured  by  the  American 
Presbyterians  at  Tengchow,  on  the 
Shantung  coast,  55  miles  from  the  nearest 
Treaty  Port,  and  inland  residence  by 
G.  E.  Moule  (afterwards  Bishop  Moule) 
in  1865  in  Hangchow,  the  capital  of 
Chekiang  Province,  about  200  miles  by 
boat  south-west  of  Shanghai.  Apart 
from  these  two  non-Treaty  Port  stations, 
there  were  just  fifteen  mission  stations 
for  the  whole  country  at  the  beginning 
of  1866.  But  in  that  year  the  China 
Inland  Mission  began  its  work,  and  two 
inland  stations  in  Chekiang  Province 
were  opened  by  J.  W.  Stevenson. 
Massacres,  Ir  1870  occurrcd  the  terrible  Tien- 

1870-97.  massacre,  when  twenty  Roman 

Catholic  workers,  chiefly  Sisters  of 
Mercy,  were  brutally  murdered  with  the 
collusion  of  the  Taotai,  the  Prefect,  and 
the  magistrate  there.  This  was  followed 
by  outbreaks  at  : 

Canton,  1883-4,  upon  eighteen 
chapels  and  the  homes  of 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  95 

Chinese  Christians,  following 
inflammatory  proclamations  by 
the  Viceroy  and  Admiral. 

Kiangsi  and  Szechwan,  1886,  against 
Roman  Catholic  missions. 

Shantung,  1886  to  1890,  chronic  dis- 
turbances against  missionaries 
of  various  nationalities,  the 
instigator  being  a high  official 
of  the  Chinese  Foreign  Office. 

Yangtse  Valley,  1891,  for  six  months, 
following  the  murder  of  William 
Argent  and  a British  officer  in 
the  Chinese  Customs  at  Wusueh  ; 
incited  by  diabolical  cartoons 
issued  by  an  official  of  Changsha, 
Hunan,  and  resulting  in  the  mur- 
der of  two  Swedish  missionaries, 
about  40  miles  inland  from 
Hankow. 

Manchuria,  1894,  murder  of  the 
learned  missionary,  A.  Wylie, 
by  Chinese  soldiers. 

Shansi,  Shensi,  Kansu,  and  Kweichow 
Provinces  were  also  full  of  anti- 
foreign  excitements,  marked  with 
some  deeds  of  violence. 

Szechwan,  1895,  riots  in  which  twenty 
Roman  Catholic  stations  were 
wrecked,  and  over  a hundred 
missionaries’  lives  endangered. 


The  ♦♦  Boxer  ^ 
Massacres,  1900. 


96  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Wenchow,  in  Chekiang  Province,  1884, 
mission  property  destroyed. 

Hua  mountain,  twelve  miles  from 
Kucheng,  Fukien,  on  August  1, 
1895,  when  nine  adults  and  two 
children  of  the  C.  M.  S.  and 
C.E.Z.M.S.  were  cruelly  murdered. 

The  last-mentioned  massacre  was  fol- 
lowed by  a public  meeting  at  Exeter 
Hall,  “ not  for  protest,  nor  for  appeal 
to  Government,  but  in  solemn  com- 
memoration of  martyred  brothers  and 
sisters,  and  for  united  prayer.” 

More  violent  measures  were  adopted 
by  the  German  Government  in  con- 
nection with  : 

Shantung,  1897,  a riot  in  which  two 
German  Catholic  priests  were 
murdered  ; 

for  shortly  afterwards  the  port  and 
hinterland  of  Kiaochow  were  taken  by 
Germany. 

In  the  above,  official  encouragement 
can  be  traced  in  all  cases.  In  the  case 
of  : 

North  China,  1900,  Boxer  uprising, 
massacre  of  224  Protestant  mis- 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  97 

sionaries  and  children,  many 
Roman  Catholic  priests,  and  hun- 
dreds of  Chinese  Christians, 

there  had  been  a decree  as  early  as 
November  5,  1898,  for  the  formation 
of  “ volunteer  bands  ” everywhere  “ to 
turn  the  whole  land  into  an  armed 
camp,”  and  the  movement  was  vigor- 
ously nursed  from  Court  by  a ruling 
clique  of  Manchu  reactionaries.  But  in 
almost  every  city  the  Chinese  officials 
were  on  the  side  of  peace  and  safety  for 
foreigners,”  while  two  statesmen  at 
Court  (Hsu  Ching-chen  and  Yuan 
Ch‘ang)  risked  and  lost  their  lives  by 
altering  most  of  the  copies  of  an  edict 
of  extermination  against  all  foreigners 
to  “ strenuously  protect.”  And  as  re- 
gards the  cause  of  China’s  integrity,  we 
may  apply  the  word  “ martyrs  ” to  these 
two  noble  heroes. 

Changsha,  Hunan,  1910,  rice-riots, 
which  took  'an  anti-foreign  turn, 
to  the  destruction  of  much  mis- 
sion and  mercantile  property. 
In  this  again,  however,  the  offi- 
cials sought  to  secure  the  safety 
of  the  foreigners. 


Changsha  Riots, 
1910. 


4 


Chinese 

Mistrust. 


Sordid  Motives. 


98  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Going  back  to  the  days  following 
Morrison,  we  see  that  the  Protestant 
missionaries  inherited  serious  diffi- 
culties from  earlier  centuries.  The  pure 
altruism  of  their  motives  was  quite  new 
to  China,  as  regards  help  and  salvation 
held  out  to  an  alien  race  in  the  face  of 
much  obloquy.  And  here  is  a point 
for  those  who  study  Comparative  Re- 
ligion : nothing  like  the  parable  of  the 
Good  Samaritan  had  ever  entered  the 
dreams  of  Chinese  Confucian  officials. 
Hence,  prejudiced  as  they  were  by 
their  experiences  with  European  traders 
and  the  methods  of  pre-Protestant  mis- 
sionaries, they  saw  in  each  missionary 
an  emissary  of  a Western  Government, 
at  least  a spy,  and  perhaps  a more  active 
agent  for  winning  the  populace  to  be 
“ subjects  of  their  foreign  kings.” 

Then,  on  the  other  hand,  the  popu- 
lace as  a whole  were  persuaded  that 
the  foreign  missionaries  were  ‘‘  foreign 
demons  ” who  had  come  with  nefarious 
intent.  Some  saw  them  to  be  moneyed 
men,  in  a land  where  Ijd.  to  Ifd.  was 
regarded  as  covering  a labourer’s  food- 
allowance  per  diem.  Others  thought 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  99 

that  they  might  be  made  the  redressers 
of  grievances — putters-through  of  law- 
suits, champions  in  family  feuds — in  the 
chaotic  state  of  Chinese  justice.  The 
missionaries  had  the  right  to  remonstrate, 
personally  or  through  their  Consuls,  with 
the  Chinese  magistrates  in  cases  of  per- 
secution. And  it  might  be  fairly  easy  for 
the  wily  ‘‘convert”  to  represent  the 
results  of  some  old  or  new  quarrel  as 
“persecution,”  and  by  getting  the  mis- 
sionary to  send  in  his  visiting-card  to 
the  official  to  let  his  influence  weigh  on 
“ our  ” side  ; for  the  magistrate  would 
be  almost  sure  to  decide  for  the  side 
that  had  “ influence.” 

From  this  condition  of  things  there  Difficulties 
arose  four  sets  of  difficulties  or  dangers  : i^^^gers. 

(1)  In  many  places  it  was  dangerous 
for  the  missionary  to  preach,  or  to 
make  any  attempt  to  rent  property  ; 

(2)  in  some  it  was  difficult  to  get  any 

converts  whatever ; (3)  in  others  it 

was  easy  to  gain  a “ Church  ” of  beggars, 
or,  to  use  a low  word  for  a low 
character,  of  “ cadgers  ” ; (4)  in  yet 

others  there  were  opportunities  for 
“ large  ingatherings,”  by  tacitly  taking 


lOO 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

up  cases  of  “ persecution,”  showing  one’s 
power  in  the  law-courts,  and  thus  gain- 
ing numerous  inquirers — after  Gospel 
truth  outwardly,  but  inwardly  for 
justice  (or  otherwise)  in  various  disputes 
and  quarrels  and  feuds.  Further,  in  a 
new  Chinese  Church  like  attracts  like — 
in  social  grade  and  moral  calibre.  Start- 
ing with  a company  of  “cadgers,”  that 
company,  however  much  it  may  grow, 
is  likely  to  be  a cadger  company  to  the 
end,  mistaking  gain  for  godliness,  and 
keeping  out  of  the  charmed  circle  men 
of  a more  respectable  grade.  Starting 
with  a company  of  lawsuit  fighters, 
that  company  will  not  commend  itself 
to  the  conscience  of  the  people  around, 
and  will  raise  animosities  among  those 
who  have  been  worsted  by  missionary 
interference.  This  latter  fact  has  un- 
doubtedly been  the  traditional  cause 
for  the  exceeding  unpopularity  of  the 
term  chiao-hui,  “ religious  society  ” or 
Church  ; and  that  unpopularity  lingers 
yet  among  the  populace,  and  among 
the  mandarins  too — where  they  have 
memories  of  having  been  overruled  by 
the  foreign  “ spiritual  father,”  “ pastor,” 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  loi 

or  what  not,  backed  by  some  officials 
of  France  (no  friend  to  Jesuits  at  home, 
but  regarding  them  a few  years  ago  as 
her  ‘‘best  agents”  in  China),  or  the 
Consul  of  any  other  land. 

Up  to  1898  practically  all  Chinese  Official  Opposi- 
mandarins  were  opposed,  in  their  hearts, 
to  the  formation  of  chiao-hui  (there  are 
no  plural  suffixes  to  Chinese  nouns), 
and  therefore  to  mission  work  in  general. 

This  arose  partly  from  the  cause  men- 
tioned above,  and  partly  from  the  fact 
that  they  had  secret  instructions  from 
the  Imperial  Government  (once  shown 
to  a British  Consul  in  confidence),  prior 
to  a brief  spell  of  reform  under  the 
young  emperor  Kuang  Hsu.  Since 
1898  they  have  not,  as  a rule,  opposed 
missionary  work. 

Three  items  concerning  this  change  Missionaries 
may  be  added  to  the  withdrawal  of 
secret  instructions  from  the  Court. 

(1)  The  Jesuit  Fathers  and  others, 
coming  into  China  in  the  first  in- 
stance as  employees  of  the  emperor, 
had  of  course  official  rank  to  start  with. 

This  being  withdrawn  by  the  successors 
of  K‘ang  Hsi,  they  still  thought  it  a 


Protestant 

Missionaries 

Disclaim 

Authority. 


102  The  Gall  of  Cathay 

possession  more  than  desirable,  and 
practically,  in  the  people’s  eyes,  as- 
sumed it.  In  1899,  as  part  of  the  in- 
demnity for  riots  in  Szechwan — it  was 
formally  offered  them  by  Government — 
they  took  rank  with  Viceroys,  Governors, 
and  Prefects.  By  the  “ favoured  nation 
clause  ” in  the  treaties,  what  was  offered 
to  one  nation  must  be  offered  to  all. 
And  so  all  Protestant  missionaries  had 
the  option  of  accepting  official  rank  ; but 
all  to  a man  declined  the  honour.  This 
enabled  the  officials  to  regard  Protestant 
missionaries  as  a class  by  themselves, 
on  their  own  merits.  The  “ official 
status  ” was  withdrawn  by  rescript  of 
March  15,  1908,  but  not  before  this 
differentiation  had  taken  place.  (2) 
In  1902  the  Missionary  Association 
(Protestant)  drew  up  a statement  for 
the  officials  of  China,  disclaiming  any 
authority  in  the  law-courts,  and  asking 
that  Church  members  be  treated  exactly 
as  other  subjects  of  the  realm.  This 
gave  the  officials  courage  to  do  so  in 
all  law- cases,  involving  Roman  Catholic 
as  well  as  Protestant  members.  (3) 
Most  important  of  all,  there  was  the 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  103 

formation  of  a society  which  should  act  Missionary 
as  middleman  between  mandarin  and  Middlemen, 
missionary,  and  between  East  and  West. 

For  officials  neither  attended  the  evan- 
gelistic preaching  nor  read  the  tracts 
issued  for  the  “ man  in  the  street,”  nor 
did  medical  mission  work  or  school  work 
directly  affect  them. 

There  was  needed  a special  mission  of 
Christian  literary  men  and  journalists 
to  the  literati  (Chinese  civil  officials 
are  just  literati  in  office).  Dr.  Y.  J. 

Allen  had  started  Christian  journalism 
as  early  as  1868,  branching  off  into  a 
more  general  magazine  for  officials  and 
scholars.  David  Hill  and  Timothy 
Richard  had  put  out  prizes  for  scholarly 
essays  on  moral,  religious,  and  social 
questions  after  the  great  famine,  and 
conceived  the  idea  of  a definite  society 
to  deal  with  these  officials  and  scholars. 

This  society  was  formed  in  1887,  under 
the  leadership  of  Dr.  Alex.  Williamson, 
and  called  ‘‘  The  Christian  Literature  So- 
ciety for  China.”  It  adopted  Dr.  Allen’s 
magazine,  the  Review  of  the  Times,  and 
added  books  on  all  subjects  for  the  uplift 
of  China.  In  the  spring  of  1904  a weekly 


104  The  Call  of  Cathay 

magazine  was  started,^  called  the  Ta 
Tung  Pao  (meaning  “ Common-Principles 
Review  which,  after  the  cessation  of 
the  Reviezv  of  the  Times  on  the  death 
of  Dr.  Allen,  began  to  be  read  at  Court 
by  princes  and  statesmen,  by  the 
Viceroys  and  Governors  of  all  the  pro- 
vince, and  by  other  prominent  officials, 
who  now  subscribe  for  2,500  copies 
weekly.  It  has  also  a general  cir- 
culation among  the  literary  men  of 
China  and  educated  Chinese  in  seven- 
teen lands  beyond  the  seas.  Books 
and  magazines,  and  the  personal  inter- 
course of  such  men  as  Timothy  Richard 
(of  the  Christian  Literature  Society 
for  China)  and  Gilbert  Reid  (Inter- 
national Institute),  have  chiefly  assisted 
in  winning  over  the  officials  of  China 
to  a right  understanding  of  the  mis- 
sionary’s aim,  as  well  as  his  message 
itself.  The  C.L.S.  issues  amount  to 
some  215,000  volumes  per  annum. 

Bible  and  Tract  And  here  it  is  fitting  to  mention  the 

Societies.  work  of  the  Bible  and  Tract  So- 

cieties— the  latter  chiefly  for  the  better- 
educated  ‘‘  man  in  the  street.” 

1 By  the  author  of  this  volume. 


CHINESE  GOSPELS. 


A MISSIONARY  SELLING  GOSPELS  IN  CHINA. 

The  Chinese  inscription  reads  : “ Spread  Abroad  the  Heavenly  Doctrine.” 

[p.  105 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  105 

The  following  table  will  serve  to 
give  an  impression  of  the  extent  of 
their  work  : 

British  and  Foreign  Bible  Soeiety, 
output  for  China  in  1909  : 
1,919,688  volumes,  an  inerease 
of  409,067  on  the  previous  year. 
Ameriean  Bible  Soeiety,  output  for 
China  in  1909  : 1,008,020  vol- 

umes, an  increase  of  482,832  on 
the  previous  year. 

National  Bible  Society  of  Scotland, 
output  for  China  in  1909  : 
1,115,062  volumes,  an  increase 
of  210,698  on  the  previous  year. 
Central  China  Tract  Society,  about 
2,500,000  booklets  and  sheet- 
tracts. 

North  China  Tract  Society,  about 

500.000. 

West  China  Tract  Society,  about 

300.000. 

Chinese  Tract  Society  (Shanghai), 
about  400,000. 

Fukien  Tract  Societies,  about  120,000. 
Hong  Kong  and  Canton  Tract  Society, 
about  45,000. 

These  Bibles,  Testaments,  portions, 
and  tracts  are  sold  at  a very  low  price, 

4* 


io6  The  Call  of  Cathay 

instead  of  being  given  away.  The  popu- 
lace considers  them  worth  paying  for. 

In  various  parts  of  the  land  there 
are  seventeen  magazines  for  Church 
members.  Of  these,  ten  are  denomina- 
tional, but  are  read  by  members  of  all 
Protestant  missions  ; the  rest  are  inter- 
denominational, but  in  some  cases  have 
only  a local  circulation— China  being  a 
land  of  such  huge  distances. 

The  Missionary  The  ccntury  after  Morrison’s  arrival 
closed  with  3,445^  Protestant  missionary 
workers  from  the  West  in  residence 
in  China — not  all  of  them  Morrisons, 
but  all  constrained  by  the  same  love 
of  Christ  which  inspired  him.  And 
here  we  must  recognise  the  grand 
work  done  by  many  whose  names  have 
been  unmentioned,  except  among  their 
small  circle  of  friends  at  home  and  a 
much  larger  circle  of  natives  in  China. 
Not  all  the  golden  deeds  have  been 
reported  in  our  missionary  magazines  ; 
not  all  have  been  eulogised  on  mis- 
sionary platforms.  The  half  has  never 
been  told  concerning  the  many  who 

^ Two  years  later  (1909)  the  number  had  increased 
to  over  4,175. 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  107 

have  added  to  their  other  fine  qualities 
an  understatement  of  their  own  achieve- 
ments. 

“The  nobly  dumb  who  did  their  deed, 

And  scorned  to  blot  it  with  a name.” 

Perchance  some  of  these  silent  workers 
will  shine  the  brightest  in  the  Kingdom 
at  last ; for  theirs  has  been  a persistent 
genius  for  hard  work  on  the  mission 
field — work  done  by  the  right  hand  un- 
known to  the  left  in  many  of  its  noblest 
details.  Some  of  them  lie  in  humble 
graves  on  Chinese  soil,  with  little  in  the 
way  of  epitaph.  But  their  prayers  live 
on  in  not  a few  hearts,  and  much  of  the 
solidity  of  the  walls  of  the  City  of  God 
in  China  is  due  to  their  unobtrusive  toil. 

Over  twelve  hundred  wives  of  mis-  Missionaries' 
sionaries  are  included  in  the  latest 
returns.  And  these  have  been  workers 
too.  Gaining  his  first  sight  of  a Protes- 
tant minister’s  wife  at  Innsbruck  in 
1706,  Father  Ripa  called  her  a priest- 
ess.” And  this  is  what  so  many  wives 
and  mothers  have  been  in  China — 
representing  God  to  man,  and  man  to 
God,  in  a way  that  only  cultured  and 
devoted  women  can.  Some  of  these 


io8  The  Call  of  Cathay 

mothers  have  just  lived  and  loved, 
without  much  stated  “ work  ” beyond 
that  in  the  family  and  the  circle  of 
missionaries,  but  the  fragrance  of  such 
lives  has  gone  forth  as  a witness  to  the 
grace  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

Some  twelve  hundred  unwedded  lady 
workers  are  also  included  in  the 
mission  staff,  and  there  has  been  a 
special  sacredness  in  the  labours  of 
these,  who  have,  many  of  them,  given 
up  prospects  of  a home  of  their  own 
that  they  might  build  up  homes  for 
their  Master  in  China  ; dealing  so  tact- 
fully with  superstition  and  stupidity 
among  older  and  poorer  women ; or 
wooing  forth  the  soul  of  China’s  future 
mothers,  saying  to  the  girls  in  their 
schools  in  Christ’s  name  : “ Damsel,  I 
say  unto  thee,  arise  ” ; or  nursing  the 
sick,  and  battling  with  death  ; bringing 
soul  after  soul  into  touch  with  Christ 
through  a life  of  winsome  loveliness — 
themselves  for  long  slandered,  and 
reckoned  by  ignorant  crowds  as  vile 
ones,  as  they  went  in  and  out  amid 
scenes  of  squalor  and  scents  unutterable 
' — winning  at  last  the  love  of  whole 


riMlnby^  \\W.  A.  Cornalrj. 

MATERIAL  FOR  WOMEn’s  WORK. 

G-roap  at  the  David  Hill  Memorial  Girls’  Boarding-school,  Hanyang. 


p.  108] 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  109 

neighbourhoods,  that  so  they  might 
win  the  women  and  girls  for  Christ. 

To-day  there  is  a Christian  community  Statistics, 
of  214,546  baptised  converts.  The  num- 
bers may  seem  small  as  compared  with 
the  total  population,  but  when  the 
tremendous  difficulties  are  taken  into 
account  it  will  be  recognised  that  there 
is  cause  for  encouragement.  So  great 
has  been  the  opposition  that  Dr.  Milne 
(1813-22)  predicted  that  a century  would 
be  required  to  build  up  a Church  of  a 
thousand  converts.  Concerning  this 
statement.  Dr.  John  R.  Mott  says  : ‘‘At 
the  end  of  the  first  35  years  of  missionary 
work  in  China  it  seemed  as  if  Dr.  Milne’s 
prophecy  would  not  be  fulfilled,  for  there 
were  but  six  converts  to  Christianity. . . . 

Even  twenty  years  later  . . . there  were 
only  50  Protestant  Christian  communi- 
cants.” Finally,  there  are  to-day 
12,082  Chinese  workers,  the  “ right- 
hand  men  ” of  the  missionaries,  or 
else  trusty  helpers  in  the  women’s 
work — as  ordained  pastors,  evangelists, 
hospital  assistants,  colporteurs,  and 
Biblewomen.  And  again,  those  unpaid, 
unofficial  Christians,  not  enumerated 


no  The  Call  of  Cathay 

on  any  statistical  tables,  who  have  been 
living  the  prayer-life,  and  introducing 
a new  sweetness  into  China’s  squalor 
of  motive  and  deed.  Not  unfruitful 
has  been  the  century  starting  with 
Morrison.  But  before  it  ended  a New 
China,  with  problems  of  its  own,  had 
begun  to  be. 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  1 1 1 


THE  FIRST  CENTURY  OF  PROTESTANT 
MISSIONS  IN  CHINA 

The  following  table  will  serve  to  fix  the  main  features  of  the 
century  in  the  mind  : 

The  Period  of  Preparation  (1807-42) 

Began  with  Morrison’s  arrival,  China  was  a fast-closed 
land  ; missionary  work  was  only  possible  in  Canton  and  the 
Portuguese  colony  of  Macao,  and  was  subject  to  severe  restric- 
tions in  both  places.  Under  edicts  of  1724  and  1744,  Christianity 
was  an  illegal  religion  and  conversion  was  forbidden  on  pain 
of  death.  These  edicts  were  withdrawn  in  1845,  The  first 
“ opium  war”  in  1840  brought  the  period  to  a close. 


The  Period  of  the  Ports  (1842-60), 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  war,  the  Treaty  of  Nanking  (1842) 
gave  Hong  Kong  to  England  and  opened  five  ports  (Canton, 
Amoy,  Foochow,  Ningpo,  and  Shanghai)  to  foreign  trade 
and  residence.  Missionaries  speedily  occupied  the  new  ground. 
About  seventeen  societies  began  work  in  addition  to  those 
already  in  the  field.  The  work  was  all  on  the  sea-board  and 
practically  limited  to  the  “ Five  Ports,”  A group  of  treaties, 
following  the  “ Arrow  War”  of  1856-8,  closed  this  period. 


The  Period  of  Penetration  (1860-77). 

The  treaties  of  1858-61  opened  the  ports  of  Newchwang, 
Chefoo,  Swatow,  Kiungchow,  Taiwan,  Tamsui,  Tientsin, 
Chinkiang,  Kiukiang,  and  Hankow.  The  last  three  ports 
being  on  the  Yangtse,  it  became  possible  for  missionaries  to  reach 
the  interior.  Hankow  was  at  once  occupied  by  the  L.M.S. 
(1861),  and  by  the  W.M.M.S.  the  following  year.  At  that  time 
there  were  about  115  missionaries  in  all  China.  In  1866  there 
were  17  mission  stations — all  along  the  coast  with  the  exception 
of  Hankow  ; the  11  inland  provinces  were  untouched.  The 
China  Inland  Mission  was  formed  at  this  time  by  Hudson 
Taylor.  The  first  C.I.M.  party  landed  at  Shanghai,  September 
30,  1866.  Gradually  they  worked  into  the  interior.  Long 
tours  of  investigation  were  taken  in  all  directions,  crossing 
China  from  side  to  side.  In  this  way  province  after  province 
was  opened — Anhwei  and  Kiangsi  in  1869  ; Honan  in  1875  ; 
Shansi,  Shensi,  and  Kansu  in  1876 ; Szchwan,  Yunnan,  and 
Kweichow  in  1877.  In  1877  the  first  Missionary  Conference 
was  held  in  Shanghai,  and  it  was  estimated  that  the  total 
number  of  workers  then  in  the  field  was  473,  representing  29 
•societies.  The  number  of  converts  was  13,035. 


I 12 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


The  Period  of  Progress  (1878-99). 

The  Shanghai  Conference  of  1877  roused  much  interest  in 
China,  and  during  the  eighties  thirteen  new  societies  entered 
the  field.  The  work  developed  everywhere,  and  medical, 
educational,  literary,  and  philanthropic  agencies  were  extended. 
In  some  parts  there  were  occasional  anti-foreign  riots  in  which 
lives  were  lost  from  time  to  time.  These  were  usually  of 
local  character.  In  the  nineties  there  were  more  serious  dis- 
turbances in  mid-China,  resulting  from  a series  of  tracts  and 
placards  of  inflammatory  nature  issued  by  the  literati  of  Hunan. 
The  entire  Yangtse  Valley  was  disturbed,  mission  stations  were 
attacked  and  burned,  missionaries  and  converts  were  murdered. 
After  the  war  between  China  and  Japan  (1894-5)  the  reform 
movement  gained  ground,  but  the  reactionaries  triumphed, 
and  by  the  coup  d’etat  of  1898  the  Emperor  was  compelled  to 
resign  the  actual  control  of  the  empire  to  the  Empress  Dowager. 

The  Period  of  Persecution  and  Establishment  (1900-1907). 

The  grabbing  of  Chinese  territory  by  various  Foreign 
Powers  (1895-8)  roused  the  national  feeling  to  fury,  and  on 
the  last  day  of  1899  the  storm  burst.  Events  moved  with  alarm- 
ing rapidity,  and  by  the  middle  of  May  the  Boxer  rising  had 
assumed  an  alarming  character.  June,  July,  and  August  were 
months  never  to  be  forgotten.  The  land  was  deluged  with 
blood.  It  was  one  last  attempt  to  expel  everything  foreign. 
It  was  futile.  It  became  clear  to  all  that  Christianity  was  too 
deeply  rooted  in  Chinese  soil  to  be  expelled.  From  that  time 
expansion  and  consolidation  have  been  general.  The  Shanghai 
Conference  of  1907  closed  the  century. 

The  above  is  abbreviated  (in  the  main)  from  the  Introduction 
to  Mr.  Marshall  Broomhall’s  Chinese  Empire. 


Protestant  Missions  in  China  1 1 3 


ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  understand  the  difficulty 
of  evangelising  China. 

1.  What  are  the  landmarks  of  the  missionary 
history  of  last  century  ? 

2.  What  were  the  difficulties  missionaries  had  to 
face  ? 

3.  To  what  extent  was  Chma  open  to  (1)  Dr.  Milne 
in  1813,  (2)  Hudson  Taylor  in  1856,  (3)  Griffith 
John  in  1861  ? 

4.  What  has  been  the  attitude  of  the  several 
classes  of  Chinese  to  Christianity  ? 

5.  Make  a list  of  what  you  conceive  to  be  the 
reasons  for  the  determined  opposition  that  has  been 
encountered  ? 

6.  How  far  do  you  consider  the  progress  of  the 
century  satisfactory  ? 


REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

Smith,  A.  ^.—The  Uplift  of  China  (pages  135-231). 
Broomhall,  M. — The  Chinese  Empire  (especially  the 
Introduction). 

Morrison,  E. — Memoirs  of  Robert  Morrison  (2  vols.). 
Townsend,  W.  J. — Robert  Morrison. 

Guinness,  G. — Story  of  the  China  Inland  Mission 
(2  vols.). 

Thompson,  W. — Gri-ffith  John. 

Forsyth,  R. — The  China  Martyrs  of  1900. 

Edwards,  E.  H. — Fire  and  Sword  in  Shansi. 


CHAPTER  IV 


WESLEYAN  METHODIST  MISSIONS  IN 
SOUTH  CHINA 

By  the  Rev.  S.  G.  Tope 

The  provinces  of  Kwangtung  and 
Kwangsi  lie  partly  within  the  Tropics, 
the  latitude  of  Canton  being  “ nearly 
parallel  with  that  of  Havana,  Muscat, 
and  Calcutta.’*  The  united  extent  of 
these  provinces  is  greater  than  the  com- 
bined area  of  the  British  Isles,  Belgium, 
Holland,  and  Denmark — a great  expanse 
of  177,000  square  miles,  diversified  by 
mountain  and  plain,  a prodigality  of 
watercourses,  and  large  tracts  of  fertile 
soil.  There  is  a total  population  of 
more  than  37,000,000,  of  which  by  far 
the  major  portion  is  to  be  found  in  the 
cities,  towns,  and  villages  of  south  and 
east  Kwangtung.  While  sharing  with 
all  China  in  one  form  of  the  written 


rhoto'ly'l 


[7?.  TTulchinson, 

A WAYSIDE  TEA-HOUSE,  KWANGTUNG. 


Photo  hxj] 
r.  U4] 


[7?  Uukhimon, 


RAPIDS  NEAR  YINGTOCK,  KWANGTUNG. 


•X 


/ 


■i 


■■■rs 


:V 


' ■ ■ . i- 


;/*v. 


A'^J' 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  1 15 

language,  there  is  no  speech  common  to 
the  people  of  this  region  ; several  dia- 
lects are  in  use,  Cantonese  being  the 
most  widely  serviceable.  The  inhabi- 
tants are  of  a sturdy,  independent  spirit, 
and  under  provocation  are  quick  to 
display  scorn  for  foreigners  ; but  they 
are  affable  and  hospitable  towards 
foreign  acquaintances.  It  is  doubtless 
true  to  describe  the  vast  majority  as 
law-abiding  and  peace-loving  ; but  be 
the  fault  where  it  may,  there  is  much 
lawlessness.  The  erstwhile  free  rovers 
of  the  sea  and  of  the  tidal  channels  in 
the  Canton  delta  have  been  suppressed  ; 
but  piracy  on  the  river-ways,  brigand- 
age in  the  countryside,  kidnapping  and 
blackmailing,  are  all  common  occur- 
rences in  the  two  provinces.  Family 
or  clan  feuds  are  numerous,  and  the 
fights  entailed  are  sometimes  utterly 
ruthless  in  character.  Withal  trade  and 
agriculture  flourish,  commerce  thrives, 
wealth  accumulates.  The  people  gen- 
erally are  industrious,  economical, 
practical ; they  esteem  politeness  and 
respond  to  it,  have  a deep  respect  for 
learning,  are  not  lacking  in  first-rate 


Mission  Foot' 
hold. 


1 1 6 The  Call  of  Cathay 

mental  capacity,  and  are  not  insensible 
to  the  call  of  high  ideals.  But  towns- 
men and  villagers  alike  worship  an- 
cestors, bow  down  to  images,  are  in 
bondage  to  baneful  superstitions, 
lightly  yield  to  many  vices,  and 
suffer  many  sorrows.  Possessing  in  the 
writings  of  their  sages  what  may  be 
fittingly  termed  an  Old  Testament, 
their  eyes  are  not  yet  opened  to  the 
supreme  worth  of  the  world’s  New 
Testament ; heirs  of  sterling  precepts 
and  principles  bequeathed  in  their 
classics,  they  lack  the  richer  heritage 
of  the  Gospel ; familiar  with  ethical 
instruction,  they  are  strangers  to  that 
mighty  moral  dynamic — “ the  salvation 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus.” 

It  was  to  assist  in  bringing  the  tidings 
of  the  grace  of  God  to  the  Chinese  that 
the  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary 
Society,  in  the  year  1852,  appointed 
George  Piercy,^  Josiah  Cox,  and  W.  R. 
Beach  as  their  first  missionaries  to 

1 Who  went  to  China  as  an  independent  worker  in 
1851,  and  started  the  Canton  Mission  under  conditions 
of  much  heroism.  He  is  mentioned  in  Cassell’s 
Heroes  of  Britain. 


GEORGE  PIERCY.  JOSIAH  COX. 

Founded  the  Wesleyan  Canton  Mission,  1851.  Reached  China,  1852.  Founded  the  W.M.S,  Mid-Cliina. 

Retired,  1882.  Mission,  18G3.  Retired,  1875. 


J 


r.. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  117 

Canton,  largest  of  all  the  cities  in  the  Canton  District, 
empire.  Despite  many  obstacles,  a 
firm  foothold  was  secured,  and,  as  oppor- 
tunity and  means  were  forthcoming,  the 
number  of  centres  of  mission  activity 
steadily  increased.  In  the  early  days 
not  only  were  country  places  difficult  of 
access,  but  even  Canton  city  was  closed 
to  foreigners.  Missionaries  resided  outside 
the  walls,  and  were  allowed  no  glimpse 
of  the  interior  except  through  gateways 
while  distributing  tracts  to  the  people 
as  they  went  in  and  out.  Ten  years 
later  property  had  been  secured  within 
the  city  itself,  as  well  as  in  the  south 
and  west  suburbs.  At  Hong  Kong  rooms 
were  rented  in  1862.  In  the  preceding 
year  a preaching-place  was  obtained 
at  Fatshan,  but  the  first  mission  house 
there  was  not  built  until  1875.  A 
chapel  was  secured  at  Sunwui  in  1871  ; 

Shiuchow  was  occupied  in  1877,  and 
Wuchow  (Kwangsi)  in  1897.  The  mis- 
sion now  carries  on  work  in  thirty-eight 
places,  which  fall  into  three  main 
groups — one  in  south  and  one  in  north 
Kwantung,  with  a third  group  situated 
in  eastern  Kwangsi.  In  the  British 


ii8  The  Call  of  Cathay 

colony  of  Hong  Kong  the  W.M.M.S.  has 
a prosperous  English  cause,  in  addition 
to  a mission  to  the  Chinese  ; elsewhere 
the  work  is  conducted  entirely  in  one 
or  other  of  the  South  China  dialects. 


STATIONS. 

Evangelism.  Evangelism  means  dissemination  of 
the  Gospel.  From  the  point  of  view  of 
missions,  it  is  an  endeavour  so  to  diffuse 
a knowledge  of  the  Gospel  among  the 
peoples,  tribes,  and  nations  of  the 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  1 19 

earth  that  the  life  of  all  shall  be  raised 
to  the  level  of  Christian  righteousness, 
peace,  and  joy.  All  missionary  depart- 
ments, agencies,  institutions,  exist  pri- 
marily for  this  work.  It  is  this  task 
which  constitutes  the  supreme  obliga- 
tion of  the  Churches,  and  forms  for  every 
Christian  an  essential  part  of  obedience 
to  Christ. 

From  the  establishment  of  the  mission,  Means, 
preaching  has  held  a prominent  place 
among  the  methods  employed  ; teaching, 
also,  dates  from  the  commencement  of 
operations  ; healing  by  qualified  physi- 
cians began  at  a much  later  date.  These 
three  represent  our  chief  activities  in 
this  District  for  the  propagation  of 
Christianity.  There  are  now  in  regular 
use  for  the  purposes  of  evangelism 
forty  pulpits,  eighteen  schools,  and  two 
hospitals.  Lantern  lectures,  special 
services,  distribution  of  books  and 
tracts,  also  have  a place.  In  the  earlier 
years  several  commentaries,  text-books, 
and  other  volumes  of  permanent  useful- 
ness were  written  and  published  in 
Chinese. 

In  every  part  of  the  District  premises  Preaching-halls. 


120 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

have  been  leased,  bought,  or  built  to 
serve  as  meeting-plaees  for  Christians, 
and  to  provide  for  “ street  preaching  ” 
where  practicable.  It  should  be  here 
mentioned  that  in  China  ‘‘  street 
preaching  services  ” are  held,  not  in 
the  street  after  the  style  of  an  English 
open-air  service,  but  in  some  chapel, 
hall,  or  other  building  opening  on  to 
the  street.  During  the  preaching  the 
hall  doors  are  kept  open,  and  people 
come  and  go  at  will ; the  congregation, 
like  an  open-air  assembly,  changing 
according  to  the  pleasure  of  the  moving 
crowd.  By  exposition  of  Scripture,  or 
by  popular  discourse,  the  Word  of  Life 
is  proclaimed,  and  year  by  year  many 
thousands  thus  have  the  Gospel  preached 
unto  them.  In  these  halls  much  good 
seed  is  sown,  and  a wide  interest  in 
Christianity  is  awakened. 

Medical  Work.  Medical  work  is  an  important  feature 
of  our  Canton  District.  We  have  two 
well- equipped  hospitals,  and  a third  is 
projected.  Our  Medical  Mission  began 
in  1881,  when  the  Rev.  Charles  Wenyon, 
M.D.,  rented  a Chinese  warehouse  in 
Fatshan.  The  work  developed  rapidly, 


TTioto  Sy]  [//.  E.  Andcrsort, 

THE  FRONT  BLOCK  OF  WUCHOW  HOSPITAL. 


PB.  WEBB  ANDERSON  AND  STUDENTS  AT  FATSHAN. 


[p-  181 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  12 1 

and  a hospital  was  built  in  due  course. 
In  recent  years  a large  new  institution 
has  been  under  construction,  and  as 
soon  as  it  is  complete  the  old  one  will 
be  given  up,  a portion  only  being 
retained  as  a city  dispensary.  This 
new  and  modern  hospital,  built  almost 
entirely  from  fees  received  from  Chinese 
sources,  will  accommodate  about  120 
in-patients.  A striking  feature  of  the 
Fatshan  medical  work  is  that  for  some 
years  it  has  had  so  large  an  income 
from  fees  as  to  be  entirely  self-sup- 
porting. 

The  medical  work  in  Wuchow,  in  the 
Kwangsi  Province,  was  commenced  in 
1897  by  the  late  Dr.  Roderick  Mac- 
donald, and  remained  under  his  care 
until  he  met  his  death  at  the  hands  of 
pirates  in  1906.  The  first  dispensary 
was  a Chinese  house-boat,  anchored 
among  the  crowded  river  population. 
The  present  hospital  was  opened  in 
1904,  and  a new  Women’s  Hospital 
last  year.  Medical  work  in  the  Kwangsi 
Province  is  in  a very  backward  con- 
dition. Ours  was  the  pioneer  hospital, 
and  even  now  there  is  only  one  other 


122 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

hospital  and  one  other  dispensary 
in  the  whole  province.  In  connection 
with  our  hospital  we  have  a home 
for  lepers  maintained  by  the  Mission 
to  Lepers  in  the  East.  The  leper  in- 
mates are  under  periodic  supervision, 
and  receive  Christian  instruction,  to- 
gether with  such  services  as  medical 
skill  can  provide  for  the  amelioration 
of  their  condition. 

In  1886  a Chinese  worker,  who  had 
received  three  years’  training  from  Dr. 
Wenyon  at  Fatshan,  opened  a dispen- 
sary at  Shiuchow  on  the  North  River. 
Two  years  later  Dr.  Macdonald  was 
appointed,  and  the  work  speedily  in- 
creased, the  number  of  consultations 
being  doubled  during  his  first  year. 
After  considerable  difficulty,  a site  for 
a dispensary  and  hospital  was  obtained 
in  October  1890 ; but  in  digging  the 
foundations  a number  of  skeletons  were 
discovered.  The  opportunity  thus 
afforded  was  at  once  seized  by  our 
opponents,  who  carried  these  bones 
through  the  streets  of  the  city  as 
evidence  that  the  graves  of  their  an- 
cestors were  being  desecrated.  As  a 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  123 

result  the  lives  of  the  missionaries  were 
in  great  peril.  Order  was  ultimately 
restored,  but  the  work  was  stopped  by 
order  of  the  district  magistrate,  who 
declared  that  a new  site  must  be  found. 
This  was  done,  but  again  opposition 
was  aroused ; and  as  Dr.  Macdonald  was 
unable  to  obtain  full  and  undisputed 
possession  of  the  land,  building  opera- 
tions were  never  commenced.  Ulti- 
mately the  doctor  was  called  to  supply 
at  Fatshan,  and  was  not  able  to 
return  to  Shiuchow  to  carry  out  his 
long-cherished  scheme.  After  an  inter- 
val of  seventeen  years  an  opportunity 
presented  itself  in  1908  to  recommence 
medical  work  in  this  town,  and  a doctor 
was  sent,  but  there  was  another  inter- 
ruption in  the  summer  of  1909,  and 
the  work  is  again  at  a standstill. 

Beyond  the  work  of  actual  healing, 
our  doctors  give  attention  to  the  train- 
ing of  Chinese  helpers  in  Western 
medicine  and  surgery.  The  importance 
of  this  work  is  self-evident. 

It  has  not  been  found  possible  to 
develop  educational  work  on  a similar 
scale.  We  have  no  institution  in  the 


Schools, 


Influence  of 
Medical  and 
Educational 
Work. 


124  The  Call  of  Cathay 

District  for  higher  education,  and  the 
provision  afforded  by  our  elementary 
schools  is  quite  inadequate,  especially 
for  boys  and  young  men.  The  Women’s 
Auxiliary  maintains  a Girls’  Boarding- 
school  in  Canton. 

The  importance  of  medical  and  edu- 
cational mission  agencies  can  scarcely 
be  overrated  ; they  must  be  reckoned 
not  as  auxiliary,  but  as  main  forces. 
Granted  always  that  the  missionary’s 
talents  are  truly  consecrated  to  soul- 
winning, expressly  engaged  to  lead 
Chinese  to  Christ,  their  potency  here 
for  the  spread  of  Christianity  will  be 
as  great  in  the  consulting-room  and  at 
the  desk  as  in  the  pulpit.  There  is 
special  value  in  medical  work  from  the 
humanitarian  point  of  view  ; there  is 
special  value  in  educational  work  in 
relation  to  the  supply  of  leaders  for  the 
Chinese  Church  and  the  nation.  But 
apart  from  these  distinctive  features, 
there  are  considerations  which  show 
that  hospitals  and  schools  (boarding- 
schools  especially)  are  not  inferior  to 
preaching-halls  as  evangelising  centres. 
These  institutions  inspire  confidence. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  125 

— Christian  and  non- Christian  meet 
there  on  a plane  of  easy  intercourse 
and  mutual  respect ; they  provide  a 
prolonged  opportunity  for  study  of  the 
Gospel ; and  through  their  instrumen- 
tality access  is  more  readily  obtained 
to  the  classes  whose  influence  is  most 
powerful  in  the  land.  These  things,  of 
such  manifest  help,  show  that  the  two 
agencies  can  rightly  claim  to  be  of 
front-rank  importance  among  means  for 
dissemination  of  the  Gospel.  Further, 
they  have  a strong  basis  of  appeal. 
Their  credentials  are  plainly  readable, 
their  utility  is  undeniable,  they  meet 
acknowledged  needs,  and  are  popular 
by  virtue  of  a considerable  demand  for 
them ; in  short,  the  people  recognise 
their  worth,  seek  their  assistance,  and 
in  part  or  in  full  are  willing  to  pay  for 
their  benefits. 

The  deservedly  honourable  place 
which  the  pulpit  has  held  and  still  holds 
in  British  Methodism  accounts  to  some 
extent  for  the  slow  growth  of  conviction 
as  to  the  equal  worth  of  school  and  of 
hospital  for  evangelism  in  the  Far  East. 
The  Wesleyan  Church  has  enlisted  but 


Touring, 


Women's  Work, 


126  The  Call  of  Cathay 

a small  number  of  physicians  and  tutors 
for  service  in  the  Chinese  field. 

Beyond  the  visitation  of  out-stations, 
touring  for  evangelistic  purposes  is  ex- 
tremely difficult  in  this  District,  For- 
eigners are  virtually  shut  out  from 
many  large  thriving  villages  near  Canton 
and  Fatshan,  Even  physicians  are 
not  always  welcomed  with  cordiality. 
Villages  here  are  the  homesteads  of 
the  patriarchal  family  or  the  clan,  and 
unless  invited  a stranger’s  visit  is  by 
many  resented  as  an  intrusion.  In 
the  sparsely  populated  mountainous 
region  the  animus  is  not  quite  so  strong ; 
but  even  where  chapel  premises  have 
been  secured,  the  missionary’s  first  visit 
has  in  more  than  one  instance  brought 
persecution  upon  the  group  of  Christians 
there. 

The  ladies  of  the  Women’s  Auxiliary 
and  the  wives  of  missionaries  co-operate 
with  the  Biblewomen  and  schoolmis- 
tresses in  order  that  the  women  and 
girls  of  these  provinces  may  become 
partakers  of  the  light,  the  joy,  the 
love  which  the  Gospel  brings.  This 
work  very  specially  affects  the  future 


OHARACTERrSTIC  RIVER-BANK  SCENE  IN  SUMMER. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  127 

of  home-life  among  the  Chinese ; it 
gives  promise  of  a time  when  in  this 
land  it  will  be  the  eommon  lot  of 
the  ehild  to  enjoy  the  unspeakable 
blessing  of  a Christian  mother’s  eare. 

The  girls’  and  women’s  boarding-school 
in  Canton  is  one  of  the  most  valuable 
institutions  of  this  District ; there  is 
a small  establishment  of  the  same  kind 
at  Wuchow,  and  more  than  half  the 
number  of  elementary  schools  are  for 
girls. 

The  community  of  believers,  created  The  Christian 
through  the  prayerful  endeavours,  past 
and  present,  of  the  mission,  is  one  which 
justly  calls  for  praise  to  God.  Its  mem- 
bers are  “ our  glory  and  our  joy.” 

Most  of  them  are  Christians  of  the  first 
generation.  They  have  been  emanci- 
pated from  errors  and  fears — the  op- 
pressive bonds  of  superstition  and 
idolatry  ; and  they  have  also  been  in- 
troduced to  that  new  spiritual  life 
through  faith  in  Christ  whose  fruitage 
is  slowly  ripening  in  Western  Christen- 
dom. (Gal.  V.  22,  23  ; Matt.  xxii. 

37-40.)  Measured  by  the  New  Testa- 
ment ideal,  by  Christianity  in  its  per- 


128 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


feet  expression,  it  may  be  prudent  to 
describe  them  as  only  in  process  of 
becoming  Christian,  as  saints  in  the 
making.  Can  more  be  said  of  the  bulk 
of  believers  anywhere  ? The  Chinese 
Christian  community,  like  those  in 
other  lands,  contains  persons  of  different 
statures,  intellectual  and  spiritual ; 
there  are  degrees  of  attainment  in  know- 
ledge, grace,  consecration  ; some  are 
weak,  some  strong.  Not  every  one 
among  them  has  been  called  upon  for 
Christ’s  sake  to  endure  robbery  of  crops 
and  agricultural  stock-in-trade,  to  be 
burnt  out  of  house  and  home,  to  be 
beaten  in  public,  to  be  boycotted  or  to 
be  put  to  personal  torture  ; some,  how- 
ever, have  thus  endured.  All  do  not 
exhibit  the  contentment  of  an  old 
brother  who  said  that  the  one  and  only 
remaining  trouble  in  life  to  him  was 
inability,  through  feebleness  of  voice, 
to  shout  aloud  the  praises  of  God  ; all 
do  not  build  a room  on  the  housetop  for 
private  prayer ; all  do  not  abandon 
business  in  order  to  preach  the  Gospel 
at  their  own  charges  ; but  a few  have 
so  done.  Allowing  for  an  Ananias,  a 


Photo  ly]  [R.  TIutcMnson. 

WESLEYAN  CHAPEL  AT  THE  UPPER  CRAIGS,  NORTH  KWANGTUNG. 


Photo  hy]  {R.  Hutchinson. 

GROUP  OF  CHRISTIANS  AT  LOK  CHENG  CHURCH,  NORTH  KWANGTUNG. 


[p.  129 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  129 

Demas,  or  other  type  of  faulty  member, 
the  encouraging  fact  remains  that  in  a 
dark  environment  there  is  a Chinese 
community  which  stands  firmly  and 
worthily  for  the  Christian  faith  and  life 
and  hope. 

This  community  is  divided  into  thirty- 
nine  Societies  or  local  Churches.  Their 
organisation  is  modelled  after  the 
English  Methodist  type.  Critically  ex- 
amined, however,  this  is  still  more  an 
aim  than  an  achievement,  and  when 
the  Chinese  take  the  moulding  of  the 
constitution  into  their  own  hands,  some 
loving  labour  by  missionaries  in  this 
direction  will  no  doubt  be  lost.  The 
ultimately  decisive  factors  in  church 
organisation  are  the  preferences  of  native 
Christians,  the  peculiarities  of  local 
conditions,  and,  so  far  as  applicable,  the 
usages  of  the  country.  The  Church  in 
China  is  a young  living  organism,  and 
ought  to  be  allowed  full  scope  for  natural 
development.  As  an  illustration  of 
what  is  desirable  here,  one  may  take 
the  evolution  of  the  Methodist  Church 
in  England,  where  the  whole  system 
arose,  as  Wesley  says,  “ without  any 

5 


Local  Churches 


130  The  Call  of  Cathay 

previous  design  or  plan  at  all  . . . just 
as  the  occasion  offered  . . . following 
only  common  sense  and  Scripture.”  ^ 

Support  and  Missionary  work  in  the  formation  of 

Control.  1 1 1 

Churches  may  be  pronounced  a success 
wherever  a local  Society  undertakes  the 
burden  of  its  own  support  and  govern- 
ment. No  Church  can  be  regarded  as 
properly  established  so  long  as  it  leans 
upon  foreign  props  of  any  kind  whatever. 
A truly  indigenous  Church  is  one  whose 
maintenance  and  control  are  self-pro- 
vided, one  whose  stability  and  growth 
are  independent  of  adventitious  helps, 
financial  or  official.  The  local  Churches 
of  this  District  have  made  some  progress 
towards  self-support.  In  Canton  it  is 
practically  attained,  and  the  same  may 
be  said  of  the  two  organised  Societies  in 
Fatshan  ; in  the  Mong  Fu  Kong  Circuit 
as  in  that  of  Sunwui  there  is  a pastor 
maintained  partly  by  local  subscriptions 
and  partly  by  grant-in-aid  from  a 
Chinese  connexional  fund  ; and  in  one 
or  two  other  places  self-support  is  within 
sight.  In  the  matter  of  government 
the  limit  of  attainment  possible  under 

1 New  Hist.  Meth.f  vol.  i.  p.  228. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  13 1 

existing  conditions  has  probably  been 
reached  in  most  places.  One  thing 
may  be  taken  as  a sign  of  the  times  : 
the  strong  patriotic  sentiment  of 
modern  days  is  felt  by  the  Christians 
and  the  non- Christians  alike.  “ China 
for  the  Chinese  ” is  a popular  maxim, 
whose  currency  in  the  south  slightly 
disturbs  the  harmony  of  relations  be- 
tween missionaries  and  converts,  and 
affects  the  control  of  local  Churches. 

Foreign  rule  is  felt  by  a few  stalwarts 
to  be  objectionable,  even  in  ecclesias- 
tical affairs.  Yet,  on  the  whole,  this 
is  really  an  excellent  feature  in  the 
situation,  essential  to  the  existence  of 
a robust  independent  Chinese  Church. 

Strictly  speaking,  a missionary  is  an  The  Pastorate, 
ambassador  to  non- Christians  ; a mes- 
senger not  so  much  to  believers  as  to 
unbelievers.  At  the  same  time  it  is 
obvious  to  any  worker  on  the  field 
that  the  newly  baptised  are  in  need 
of  further  instruction,  and  that  it  is 
incumbent  upon  him  to  provide  it.  It 
often  happens,  therefore,  that  where  a 
missionary  is  in  residential  proximity, 
the  local  Church  comes  to  depend 


132  The  Call  of  Cathay 

upon  him  for  regular  ministration,  and 
the  missionary  assumes  ehureh  office 
and  rule.  At  the  out-stations  the 
Societies  are  placed  under  the  care  of 
foreign-paid  catechists,  and  at  intervals 
are  visited  by  missionaries.  The  prob- 
lem is  how  to  furnish  an  efficient  Chinese 
pastorate  for  the  ever-increasing  number 
of  societies,  scattered  over  a very  wide 
area.  To  ordain  Chinese  to  the  ministry 
and  to  support  them  by  foreign  funds 
is  to  fail  in  a most  material  particular. 
English  Methodism  to-day  is  a highly 
complex  organisation,  and  it  is  con- 
ceivable that  in  China  it  might  be  well 
to  revert  to  the  practice  of  primitive 
times ; to  follow,  for  instance,  what 
obtained  in  the  Church  of  the  second 
century  of  the  Christian  era,  when  “ the 
officials  were  separated  by  no  sharp 
line  from  the  people  by  whom  they  were 
chosen,  and  with  whom  they  had  to 
act  in  concert.  They  were  not  a pro- 
fessional class,  but  men  of  the  world 
who  practised  worldly  trades  such  as 
those  of  physicians,  lawyers,  farmers, 
silversmiths,  or  small  shopkeepers.”  ^ 

1 Gwatkin,  Early  Church  Hist.,  vol.  i.  p.  230. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  133 

Much  attention  has  been  given  to  Canton 
the  education  of  Chinese  co-workers,  i^sSmion!^ 
and  the  present  Theological  Institution 
in  Canton  has  an  average  of  twenty 
men  in  training  each  year.  The  In- 
stitution was  opened  in  1890  to  meet  a 
need  long  felt  by  many  pastors,  evan- 
gelists, and  teachers  for  our  work.  Be- 
sides the  resident  students  undergoing 
a full  course  of  training,  local  preachers 
and  office-bearers  in  the  Chinese  Church 
are  invited  to  come  to  the  Institution 
for  Bible  study  and  training  in  Christian 
service.  In  1906  the  curriculum  was 
altered  to  include  a wider  range  of 
subjects,  and  so  keep  abreast  of  the 
modern  educational  advance  in  China. 

The  services  of  Chinese  agents  are  indis- 
pensable, and  most  praiseworthy ; it 
is  chiefly  upon  their  efforts  that  the 
evangelism  of  China  must  depend. 

The  public  means  of  grace  are  brought  Edification  of 
within  reach  of  the  members.  Assembly  Church?^^^ 
for  worship  on  the  Sabbath  is  customary 
in  all  places  which  the  mission  has  oc- 
cupied, and  there  are  meetings  during 
the  week  for  prayer,  Bible-study,  or 
testimony.  The  Scriptures  are  read  and 


Activities  of 
the  Chinese 
Church, 


134  The  Call  of  Cathay 

expounded,  though  not  always  by  trained 
workers.  The  practice  of  private  prayer 
and  family  worship  is  inculcated.  Some 
of  the  Christians  display  a remarkable 
gift  for  extemporaneous  prayer,  though 
the  majority  perhaps  rather  resemble 
the  Chinese  student  who,  after  a few 
trembling  utterances,  concluded  with  the 
humble  admission  : “I  know  no  more. 
Forgive.  Amen.”  Conventions  for  the 
deepening  of  the  spiritual  life  are  held 
occasionally.  As  means  for  edification 
they  are  appreciated  and  fruitful. 

It  is  impossible  to  gauge  accurately 
the  amount  of  work  for  Christ  which  is 
done  by  the  members.  Some  hold 
week- evening  meetings  in  their  homes 
for  social  prayer,  or  for  evangelistic 
purposes,  neighbours  who  are  inquirers 
being  invited  to  attend.  There  are 
voluntary  church  officers  whose  help  is 
regularly  given,  and  there  is  evidence 
of  informal,  unostentatious  service  by 
others  of  the  community.  They  care 
for  the  poor,  and  contribute  to  the 
usual  fund.  In  Fatshan  as  well  as  in 
Canton  a home  of  moderate  size  has 
been  provided,  where  a few  aged  and 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  135 

needy  members  are  supported  by  the 
local  Church.  It  is  certain  that  when 
one  or  two  existing  disabilities  have 
been  removed  more  initiative  and 
enterprise  will  be  displayed  for  the  ex- 
tension of  the  Kingdom  of  God  in  these 
provinces.  Christian  communities  in 
China  are  not  free  to  propagate  their 
new  faith  except  under  the  auspices  of 
the  foreign  missionary.  In  recent  years 
some  of  the  Christians  have  petitioned 
Chinese  officials  of  high  rank  for  greater 
liberty,  but  without  success.  Chris- 
tianity is  permitted  a wide  toleration, 
but  not  full  freedom  ; what  legal  right 
the  Chinese  have  to  become  Christian 
is  secured  to  thern  by  foreign  treaties, 
not  by  unconstrained  charter  from  the 
Chinese  Government. 

Our  Canton  District  has  a little  over  W.M.M.S. 
2,000  adults  (Chinese)  in  full  church 
membership,  including  35  local  preach- 
ers, 24  class-leaders,  and  33  stewards. 

These  are  the  tabulated  returns  for  the 
year  1909.  They  must  not  be  taken 
as  indicating  a uniformly  high  standard 
of  excellence  among  the  members,  or  an 
equal  fitness  and  devotion  among  the 


The  Non- 

Christian 

Multitude. 


136  The  Call  of  Cathay 

workers  ; and  they  only  imperfectly 
reveal  the  actual  progress  of  Christianity 
among  the  masses.  But  the  potential 
worth  of  such  a company  of  believers 
in  this  land  is  incalculably  great. 

Reports  from  the  mission  field  are 
usually  concerned  with  church  increase 
and  the  narration  of  incidents  which 
appeal  to  the  imagination  and  the  heart. 
The  interest  of  many  supporters  is  based 
upon  what  is  dramatic,  adventurous, 
thrilling,  marvellous  in  the  missionary 
story.  One  consequence  is  that 
achievements  on  the  foreign  field  are 
apt  to  be  thrown  out  of  true  perspective, 
things  exceptional  and  things  typical 
get  confounded,  and  the  triumph  of 
Christianity  is  by  some  supposed  to  be 
on  the  point  of  completion  when  in  fact 
it  has  scarcely  begun.  It  has  to  be  kept 
in  mind  that  the  soul  of  a missionary 
is  prophetic  ; in  a single  seed  he  can  see 
a great  harvest,  in  one  believer  a con- 
verted nation.  Not  for  that  is  he  to 
be  discredited.  Even  as  his  Lord  in 
the  prescient  utterance,  “ I beheld 
Satan  fallen  as  lightning  from  heaven,” 
so  the  missionary  beholds  final  victory 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  137 

from  the  very  outset  of  the  eam- 
paign. 

To  learn  what  is  the  aetual  state  of 
affairs  here,  one  must  eonsider  not  the 
Christian  eommunity  only,  but  also 
their  environment,  and  gain  a elear  idea 
of  what  remains  to  be  done  among  the 
non-Christian  multitude.  Some  few 
instances  have  been  known  in  South 
China  of  persons  zealous  for  bringing  in 
the  sheaves  who,  finding  that  the  sickle 
was  not  in  extensive  demand,  promptly 
and  in  high  dudgeon  sailed  for  home, 
declaring  that  they  had  been  misled 
into  believing  that  this  field  was  “ white 
unto  harvest.”  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
most  candidates  for  service  in  the  Orient 
are  better  informed.  To  any  disin- 
terested spectator  it  is  plain  that  within 
the  limits  of  the  Canton  District  there 
is  not  an  eager  desire  on  the  part  of  the 
people  to  embrace  Christianity.  The 
masses  are  not  crying  out  for  the  Gospel, 
and  visible  tokens  of  surrender  to  Christ 
are  relatively  few.  Look  at  the  great 
mart  of  Fatshan.  So  far  as  appearances 
portend,  this  wealthy,  busy  centre  is  not 
near  to  even  nominal  acceptance  of  “ the 

5* 


13^  The  Call  of  Cathay 

word  of  this  salvation.”  Out  of  half  a 
million  people  there  are  probably  not 
more  than  five  hundred  adult  members 
in  the  different  Churches.  Incense  to 
idols  still  ascends  from  shrines  in  house, 
shop,  street,  and  temple  ; costly  pro- 
cessions are  held  in  honour  of  gods  and 
goddesses  of  wood  and  stone  ; births, 
marriages,  funerals  call  for  Buddhist, 
Taoist,  or  other  non- Christian  rites  ; 
and  all  life’s  affairs  are  held  in  re- 
lentless grip  by  superstition  in  some 
form.  This  is  characteristic  of  most 
parts  of  Kwangtung  and  Kwangsi. 
Nothing  like  a mass  movement  towards 
Christianity  has  yet  occurred,  and  tested 
by  purely  numerical  results  progress  is 
slow. 

Cheering  Signs.  Notwithstanding  this,  there  are  signs 
that  the  emancipating  power  of  Christian 
truth  is  being  felt  by  the  people. 
Much  has  rightly  been  ascribed  to  the 
impact  of  Western  civilisation,  though 
in  this  connection  it  should  not  be  for- 
gotten that  humane  progress  in  the  West 
is  mainly  a product  of  Christian  prin- 
ciples and  ideals.  Missionary  activity, 
however,  is  entitled  to  a chief  place 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  139 

among  factors  which  make  for  progress  in 
China  ; and  there  is  reason  for  affirming 
that  the  vitalising  influences  of  Chris- 
tianity are  not  limited  to  the  professedly 
Christian  community.  (1)  Efforts  for 
social  and  moral  reform,  in  which 
church  members  and  non- Christians 
join,  are  noteworthy.  By  the  formation 
of  societies,  processions  in  the  streets, 
distribution  of  literature,  public  meet- 
ings, and  by  the  vernacular  Press,  a 
crusade  is  being  undertaken  against 
opium- smoking,  foot-binding,  domestic 
slavery,  gambling,  and  other  abuses. 
Although  in  expression  fitful  rather 
than  persistent,  there  is  the  growth  of 
a public  spirit  making  for  righteousness, 
which  owes  much  to  the  stimulus  of 
the  Gospel.  (2)  Idolatry,  so  firmly 
entrenched  in  the  south,  is  not  wholly 
unaffected.  In  recent  years  Canton  has 
witnessed  the  destruction  of  a great  many 
idols,  the  conversion  of  a few  temples 
into  schools,  and  the  assessment  of 
temple  revenues  to  meet  the  cost  of 
modern  education.  Of  Lungchow,  in 
Kwangsi,  it  is  stated  that  only  one  is 
left  out  of  a large  number  of  temples, 


140  The  Call  of  Cathay 

all  the  others  having  been  either  rased 
to  the  ground  or  turned  into  sehools. 
Last  year  (1909)  two  temples  in  the 
Canton  delta  region  were  visited  by 
a magistrate,  under  whose  orders  the 
images  were  dragged  into  the  open, 
beheaded  and  broken  in  pieces.  Inci- 
dents might  be  given  from  other  parts 
of  these  provinces  ; and  while  one  must 
not  infer  that  there  is  any  popular  re- 
volt against  idolatry,  these  things  cer- 
tainly do  reveal  a considerable  decadence 
of  faith  in  idol  worship.  (3)  One  other 
sign  deserves  mention,  viz.  the  counten- 
ance which  is  openly  given  to  mission 
college  and  hospital  work  by  the  pro- 
vincial officials.  In  Canton  certain 
annual  functions  of  the  larger  mission 
institutions  are  attended  by  the  civic 
authorities  in  person  or  by  proxy.  In 
1907  the  celebration  of  the  Morrison 
centenary  was  an  encouraging  instance 
of  Chinese  public  appreciation  of  Chris- 
tian missions.  That  expressions  of 
goodwill  by  the  governing  classes  are 
not  more  frequent,  is  attributable  largely 
to  lack  of  such  equipment  on  mission 
stations  as  would  give  suitable  oppor- 


p.  140] 


THE  LATE  EMPRESS-DOWAGEK  OF  CHINA 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  14 1 

tunity  for  cultivation  of  cordial  re- 
lations. 

A few  of  the  things  which  seriously  Obstacles 
impede  the  spread  of  Christianity  may  ^^^s^fess. 
be  summarised.  (1)  The  suspicion  that 
missions  have  ulterior  designs  of  a 
political  nature  has  not  yet  passed  away. 

(2)  Many  still  imagine  that  to  accept 
the  Gospel  one  must  join  a “ foreign  ” 
Church.  Nothing  is  more  common  than 
to  hear  critics  speak  slightingly  of  the 
faith  as  “ foreign  religion,”  and  converts 
are  often  stigmatised  as  unpatriotic.  (3) 
Opposition  of  the  Confucian  School. 
Chinese  scholars  do  not  see  that  the 
Gospel  will  “ fulfil  ” the  ethics  of  their 
classics,  any  more  than  the  scribes  and 
Pharisees  of  Judaea  saw  that  it  fulfilled 
the  Law.  They  strongly  object  to  a 
substitution  of  the  New  Testament 
criterion  for  religion  and  morals. 

It  was  in  the  earlier  period  of  the  Troubled 
Taiping  Rebellion  that  the  W.M.M.S. 
entered  upon  its  task.  From  that  date 
onwards  there  have  been  only  brief  ex- 
periences of  really  peaceful  times. 

Work  has  been  hindered  repeatedly  by 
disorder  or  disaster,  traceable  in  most 


142 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

cases  to  international  complications,  or 
to  political  unrest — the  wars,  rebellions, 
and  outbreaks  of  anti-foreign  hostility 
so  plentifully  recorded  in  modern  Chinese 
history.^  Again  and  again  a stop  has 
been  put  to  activity,  and  to  ensure  their 
safety  missionaries  have  been  recalled 
to  Canton,  or  withdrawn  to  Macao  or 
Hong  Kong.  There  have  been  several 
attacks  upon  mission  property,  the 
worst  being  that  in  the  Sunwui  Circuit 
in  1900,  when  five  chapels  and  two 
schools  were  destroyed  by  rioters.  At 
the  same  time  many  Chinese  Christians 
were  driven  from  their  homes,  and  had 
to  flee  to  Canton  or  Hong  Kong  for 
refuge.  Prices  have  been  set  upon  the 
lives  of  missionaries  and  catechists ; 
some  of  the  staff  while  journeying  have 
been  “ held  up  ” by  bandits  and  robbed. 
In  1906  Dr.  Roderick  J.  J.  Macdonald 
was  killed  by  pirates  on  the  West 
River,  while  travelling  by  steamer  from 
Canton  to  Wuchow.  Even  in  the 
present  year  (1910)  mutinous  troops 
in  Canton,  and  marauding  bands  in 

^ The  story  is  told  at  length  in  The  W .M .M .S . in 
China. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  143 

the  vicinity  of  Wuchow,  have  been  dis-  Rate  of  Pro- 
turbing  factors. 

The  European  staff  has  never  been  a 
large  one  in  any  given  year.  Break- 
down in  health  has  frequently  necessi- 
tated retirement  from  the  field,  and  for 
a long  time  past  continuity  of  the  work 
on  some  stations  has  not  been  adequately 
maintained.  What  progress  has  been 
made  is  due  to  the  gracious  help  of  our 
God.  Confronted  by  the  surviving 
elder  brother  of  civilised  nations,  face 
to  face  with  an  ancient,  conservative, 
exclusive  people,  naught  but  Divine 
power  could  make  efficient  any  mis- 
sionary endeavour  to  break  down 
barriers  to  the  admission  of  the  Gospel. 

It  was  in  1857  that  the  W.M.M.S.  reaped 
its  first  harvest,  the  number  of  converts 
being  5 ; at  the  end  of  ten  years  there 
were  23  converts  ; of  twenty  years,  81 
converts  ; of  thirty  years,  260  converts  ; 
of  forty  years,  728  converts.  Here  is 
steady  improvement  in  the  rate  of 
increase.  This  has  continued,  for 
while  it  took  more  than  forty-five  years 
to  win  the  first  thousand  adult  church 
members,  the  twelve  years  ensuing  have 


144  The  Call  of  Cathay 

added  a second  thousand  to  the  mem- 
bership roll. 

Attention  to  the  Army  and  Navy 
dates  back  to  1859,  when  pastoral  care 
was  given  to  about  twenty  soldiers, 
members  of  Society,  who  were  in  garri- 
son at  Canton  during  the  ‘‘  Arrow  War.” 
After  the  British  troops  withdrew  from 
this  city  much  good  work  for  soldiers 
and  sailors  was  done  in  Hong  Kong, 
chiefly  through  the  devotion  of  earnest 
Methodist  laymen.  In  1888  a Wesleyan 
minister  was  appointed  to  Hong  Kong, 
and  in  1893  a garrison  church  was 
built  there.  Two  years  later  “ Army 
and  Navy  Rooms  ” were  opened,  and 
were  the  centre  of  good  work  until  the 
new  Sailors’  and  Soldiers’  Home  was 
erected  in  1900.  The  Institution  has 
a good  coffee-bar,  a comfortable  reading- 
room,  two  billiard-tables,  a meeting- 
room,  a prayer-room,  and  one  hundred 
beds.  There  are  some  4,000  sailors 
and  2,000  soldiers  stationed  in  Hong 
Kong,  except  for  four  or  five  months 
in  the  hot  season,  when  the  fleet  goes 
to  Japan.  Those  who  know  anything 
about  the  prevalence  of  gaiety,  drunken- 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  145 

ness,  and  vice  in  Eastern  ports  will 
understand  what  a boon  this  home  is 
to  those  who  desire  to  live  a pure,  godly 
life.  To-day  Methodism  has  a flourishing 
English  Church  in  the  colony,  com- 
prising a large  number  of  civilians  in 
addition  to  members  from  H.M.  forces. 

Beside  the  W.M.M.S.,  nineteen  other  Comrades  in 
Protestant  Societies  are  at  work  in 
South  China.  There  is  a strong  feeling 
of  comradeship  among  most  of  them, 
but  as  yet  nothing  noteworthy  in  the 
shape  of  federation.  Of  these  societies, 
the  L.M.S.  is  the  senior,  dating  from 
1807 ; eight  others  entered  this  region 
earlier  than  the  W.M.M.S.,  though  all 
are  not  located  in  Canton.  The  missions 
are  under  exceptional  obligation  to  the 
Bible  Societies  for  their  versions  of  the 
Scriptures  in  Chinese,  both  colloquial 
and  book  style  ; they  owe  much  also  to 
the  Religious  Tract  and  other  Societies 
for  supplies  of  Christian  literature  in 
Chinese. 

In  the  religious  world  to-day  inquiry  The  Ruling 
has  arisen  as  to  the  aim  or  object  which 
should  dominate  missions,  and  guide 
in  general  policy.  Is  it  the  conversion 


146  The  Call  of  Cathay 

of  individual  souls — an  early  view  ; or 
the  expansion  of  one’s  chosen  denornina- 
tiori—a  prevalent  view  ; or  the  Chris- 
tianisation  of  nations — an  advocated 
view  ? Which  of  these  is  most  in  accord 
with  the  command  to  preach  the  Gos- 
pel to  the  whole  creation,”  to  “ make 
disciples  of  all  the  nations  ” ? It  is  best 
to  conclude  that  the  first  and  third 
views  are  not  to  be  brought  into  oppo- 
sition ; and  to  hold  that  while  new  life 
in  Christ  Jesus  is  a personal  experience, 
and  individual  souls  are  a true  objec- 
tive for  the  missionary,  no  effort  ought 
to  be  spared  to  commend  Christianity 
to  the  rulers  and  the  people  with  a view 
to  accelerate  general  recognition  of  its 
worth  and  authority  by  the  nation.  In 
a broad  historic  sense,  Christianity 
among  Western  peoples  has  been  a 
slow  process  of  development  from  the 
nominal  to  the  real,  from  form  and 
creed  to  life  and  godliness ; and 
it  is  not  unreasonable  to  assume  that 
something  analogous  will  occur  in 
China.  The  second  view — expansion  of 
particular  denominations — ^^is  not  re- 
garded as  ideal  by  any  one.  The  prob- 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  147 

lems  involved  are  the  Gordian  knot  of 
Protestantism,  but  much  prayerful 
thought  is  being  bestowed  upon  the 
subject,  and  the  day  draws  nearer  when 
this  knot  will  be  successfully  untied  or 
cut.  Happily,  it  grows  clearer  that  the 
questions  in  debate  properly  belong 
to  the  sphere  of  the  practical  intelli- 
gence. This  gives  promise  that  diffi- 
culties will  eventually  disappear,  and 
God’s  army  move  forward  in  more  thor- 
ough union,  for  the  establishment  of  His 
Kingdom.  Meantime,  the  twenty  soci- 
eties at  work  here  will  seek  to  augment 
the  number  of  disciples,  now  reckoned 
to  exceed  40,000  in  the  two  provinces. 

The  rightfulness  of  the  claim  of  the  The  World's 
Christian  religion  for  universal  sway,  * 
the  justification  of  missions  to  non- 
Christian  peoples,  the  obligation  of  the 
Churches  to  labour  unceasingly  for 
the  enthronement  of  Christ  in  human 
hearts  in  every  clime — all  are  demon- 
strable not  simply  from  the  New  Testa- 
ment, but  also  emphatically  from  the 
world’s  need.  If  any  cry  persists  in 
the  world  that  can  be  called  universal, 
it  is  the  cry  for  righteousness  ; if  there 


148  The  Call  of  Cathay 

be  any  deep-seated  ungratified  longing 
common  to  the  great  masses  of  all 
nations,  it  is  the  longing  for  peace. 
That  injustice  and  strife  abound  in 
Southern  China  requires  no  telling.  It 
was  but  a few  months  ago  that 
seventeen  maimed  bodies,  blackened 
by  bomb  explosion,  lay  dead  or  dying 
in  a village  near  Fatshan,  victims  of 
clan  enmity ; it  was  but  yesterday, 
within  the  limits  of  our  North  River 
Circuit,  that  forty  lives  were  sacrificed 
in  a clan  fight.  And  yet,  paradoxical 
as  it  may  sound,  both  sides  would 
protest  that  they  sue  for  justice,  and 
strive  for  amity.  Not  here  alone,  but 
everywhere,  the  voice  is  loud  which 
calls  for  righteousness  and  peace.  These 
blessings  are  confessedly  of  Catholic 
value;  they  are  the  natural  products 
of  the  Christian  faith.  At  this  hour 
there  is  no  place  on  the  earth  where 
they  obtain  in  greater  measure,  or  abide 
in  more  security,  than  where  the  spirit 
of  Jesus  Christ  is  predominant  among 
the  people.  He  indeed  is  Prince  of 
Peace.  The  far  vision  and  theme  of  the 
angels  who  sang  His  advent  was 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  149 

“ peace  on  earth.”  His  Gospel  is  a 
Gospel  of  peace,  though  not  at  the  price 
of  righteousness.  For  He  also  is  Sun  of 
Righteousness.  His  light  permits  no 
corruption  ; the  new  life  He  gives  is 
a life  unto  righteousness.  His  great 
purpose  among  men  is  to  set  up  in 
strength  God’s  Kingdom  of  righteous- 
ness, and  it  is  this  Kingdom  which  men 
are  urged  to  “ seek  first.”  To  the 
Hebrew  poet  salvation  was  brought 
nigh  when  to  his  listening  ear  came  the 
words,  “ righteousness  and  peace  have 
kissed  each  other.”  Not  the  one  at  the 
cost  of  the  other,  not  a poverty  of  both, 
but  the  two  in  happy  union  to  bless  the 
people.  What  vital  need  in  twentieth- 
century  South  China  is  more  obvious 
or  clamant  than  this  ? What  but  “ the 
power  of  God  unto  salvation  ” can 
meet  it  ? And  what  summons  more 
imperative  could  ever  come  from  the 
world  to  impel  the  Churches  to  combine 
with  one  accord  for  the  promulgation 
of  Christianity  ? 


150 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  consider  the  methods  to 
be  employed  in  the  evangelisation  of  China. 

1.  Enumerate  the  methods  of  work  now  employed 
in  our  Canton  District.  Can  you  suggest  any  other 
methods  ? 

2.  Which  would  you  rather  be  as  a Chinese  mis- 
sionary— Evangelistic,  Educational,  Literary,  Medi- 
cal, or  Philanthropic  ? Give  reasons. 


REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

Broomhall,  Marshall. — The  Chinese  Empire  (pages 
43-54). 

Barber,  W.  T.  A. — The  Wesleyan  Missionary  Atlas 
of  China  (1893). 

Walker,  F.  D. — The  W.M.M.S.  in  China. 
Macdonald,  M. — Roderick  Macdonald. 

Turner,  J.  A. — Kwang  Tung. 

Tatchell,  W.  a. — Wesleyan  Medical  Missions  in 
China. 

W.M.M.S. — The  General  Report  of  the  W .M.M.S., 
1910. 


CHAPTER  V 


WESLEYAN  METHODIST  MISSIONS  IN 
HUPEH 

By  the  Rev.  G.  A.  Clayton 

The  Province  of  Hupeh  (“  North  of  the  The  Hupeh 
Lake  ”)  and  its  adjoining  provinee 
Hunan  (“  South  of  the  Lake  ”)  were 
one  under  the  last  dynasty,  being  then 
called  Hukwang  (“  Lake  expanse  ”).  In 
each  case  the  name  refers  to  the  Tungting 
Lake,  which  is  the  largest  in  China. 

Hupeh  has  an  area  of  71,410  square 
miles,  so  that  it  is  larger  than  England 
and  Wales,  and  a population  estimated 
at  35  millions.  The  eastern  portion  of 
the  province  constitutes  a large,  well- 
watered  plain.  The  remainder  is  moun- 
tainous, some  of  the  mountains  being 
more  than  4,000  feet  high.  “ The  plain 
being  well  watered  is  very  fertile,  and 
though  in  the  mountains  famines  do 
occur,  the  province  is  not  in  the  same 

151 


The  Three 
Cities. 


152  The  Call  of  Cathay 

danger  of  depopulation  as  are  other 
parts  of  China.”  Near  the  Hunan 
border  is  situated  one  of  China’s  sacred 
mountains,  Wu-tang-shan,  which  is 
dedicated  to  the  founder  of  the  Taoist 
sect,  and  thousands  of  pilgrims  from  all 
parts  of  the  empire  visit  this  shrine. 
The  Han  River  unites  with  the  mighty 
Yangtse  in  the  midst  of  this  province, 
and  Wuchang,  the  provincial  capital, 
Hankow,  ‘‘  the  mart  of  nine  provin- 
ces,” and  Hanyang  are  situated  at  the 
angles  made  by  this  confluence.  The 
railway  to  Peking  has  its  headquarters 
at  Hankow,  and  lines  are  projected 
from  there  to  Canton  and  to  Szechwan. 
Ocean  steamers  can  in  the  summer  easily 
reach  Hankow,  which  is  situated  600 
miles  from  the  coast,  and  shallow- 
draught  steamers  can  proceed  for  hun- 
dreds of  miles  farther  up  the  Yangtse, 
and  across  the  lake  to  the  capital  of 
Hunan.  The  three  cities  named  have  a 
population  . of  not  less  than  a million 
souls.  By  the  German  Treaty  of  1861 
Hankow  was  opened  as  a port,  and 
Griffith  John  and  a companion  arrived 
there  before  the  year  closed. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  153 

The  Wesleyan  Missionary  Society  has  w.m,m.s. 
its  head-quarters  in  the  three  cities,  ^ 
and  has  thence  extended  an  almost 
unbroken  chain  of  stations  and  out- 


MAP  OF  THE  HUPEH  PROVINCE  TO  SHOW  W.M.M.S. 
STATIONS. 


stations  down  the  Yangtse  to  the  south 
border,  and  another  up  the  basin  of  the 
Han  and  its  tributaries  to  the  north 
border.  The  names  of  the  principal 
stations  are  mentioned  in  the  following 
narrative,  and  the  general  position  of 
the  circuits  can  easily  be  remembered 


Other  Missions. 


154  The  Call  of*  Cathay 

if  a little  attention  be  given  to  the 
map. 

Several  other  missions  are  at  work 
in  the  Hupeh  Province,  but  the  field 
has  been  well  divided,  and  of  all  the 
out-stations  opened  by  our  Society  only 
two  are  at  present  occupied  conjointly 
with  other  missions.  The  most  im- 
portant of  these  other  missions  are  the 
London,  the  China  Inland,  the  Church 
of  Scotland,  the  Swedish,  the  American 
Baptist,  and  the  American  Protestant 
Episcopal. 

If  the  first  four  chapters  of  this  book 
have  answered  the  purpose  for  which 
they  have  been  penned,  they  have  left 
on  the  mind  of  the  reader  the  clear  im- 
pression that  the  past  century  of  mis- 
sionary work  in  the  Chinese  Empire 
has  not  been  in  vain  in  the  Lord. 
The  great  spiritual  movements  now 
being  witnessed  in  China  give  abundant 
proof  that  the  Gospel  of  our  Saviour 
is  well  fitted  to  reach  the  hearts  of  these 
dwellers  in  the  Far  East,  and  to  win 
their  faith.  Let  us  now  turn  our 
thoughts  more  in  detail  to  the  work  of 
the  W.M.M.S.  in  Central  China,  and 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  155 

learn  that  the  Pauline  dictum  that 
tribulation,  in  its  ultimate  working, 
produces  a hope  that  will  not  be  put 
to  shame  has  been  there  exemplified. 

For  the  twelve  years  succeeding  1852 
our  Missionary  Society  had  but  one  Dis- 
trict in  the  Far  East,  and  this  was  known 
as  the  China  District — presumably  the 
largest  which  British  Methodism  has 
ever  claimed,  be  it  for  area  or  for  popu- 
lation. Its  immensity  soon  led  the 
brethren  in  Canton  to  urge  occupation 
of  other  strategic  centres,  for  in  January 
1863  the  stations  recommended  included 
Hankow,  Peking,  and  Tientsin.^  Ere  long 
work  in  Central  China  was  fairly  started, 
and  the  field  was  divided  into  the  two 
Districts  of  Canton  and  Wuchang,  the 
first  including  all  the  stations  and  out- 
stations  in  the  Kwangtung  Province, 
and  the  latter  the  new  work  in  Hupeh. 

The  work  in  Hupeh  began  in  a time 
of  great  distress,  for  the  Taiping 
Rebellion  was  ravaging  these  usually 
fruitful  regions.  Town  after  town  had 
been  destroyed,  and  the  rebels,  who 

^ The  last  two  were  never  occupied  by  the 

W.M.M.S. 


The  Original 
Field. 


The  Taiping 
Rebellion. 


156  The  Call  of  Cathay 

had  started  out  under  the  guidanee  of 
the  “ Heaven  King  ” to  dethrone  the 
reigning  dynasty  and  to  abolish  idolatry, 
were  degenerating  into  marauders  of  the 
worst  type.  Such  experiences  as  those 
of  Chii  Shao-an  (who  became  our  first 
Chinese  minister)  were  not  uncommon. 
Returning  to  Hankow  after  a short 
absence  in  the  autumn  of  1855,  he  found 
that  great  mart  in  ashes  and  his  business 
premises  destroyed.  Fearing  that  some 
evil  might  also  have  overtaken  his 
family,  he  journeyed  with  all  speed  to 
his  country  home,  only  to  find  that  his 
wife  had  hanged  herself  to  escape  out- 
rage, that  his  little  ones  were  dying  as 
the  result  of  their  sufferings,  and  that 
of  the  ten  persons  who  had  composed 
the  household  one  alone  could  survive. 

Invited  by  the  But  among  the  leaders  of  the  Rebel- 
Shield  King.^  ^as  one  known  as  the  “ Shield 

King,”  who  had  once  been  a Wesleyan 
evangelist  in  Canton.  This  man  sent 
a letter  to  the  Rev.  Josiah  Cox  (then 
on  furlough  in  England  after  a term  of 
service  in  the  Canton  District),  urging 
him  to  come  to  Nanking  as  chaplain  to 
their  Court  there.  The  call  was  so 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  157 

clear  that  the  Mission  House  at  once 
set  him  free  for  this  work.  But  when 
Mr.  Cox  arrived  at  Nanking  and  entered 
the  palace,  he  found  that  the  “ Shield 
King  ” was  unable  to  offer  him  even  a 
welcome,  because  the  other  leaders  were 
intent  on  establishing  a religion  which 
had  as  its  deity  a Trinity  composed 
of  the  Heaven  Father,  the  Heaven 
Brother  (Christ),  and  the  Heaven  King 
(the  rebel  leader)  ; and  the  mere  fact 
that  the  ‘‘  Shield  King  ” had  invited  a 
missionary  to  teach  the  Gospel  had  in- 
volved him  in  trouble.  How  deter- 
mined the  “ Heaven  King  was  on 
this  point  may  be  learnt  from  the  fact 
that,  shortly  before  Mr.  Cox’s  arrival, 
he  had  summarily  decapitated  two 
copyists  for  failing  to  remove  from  the 
proofs  of  a tract  some  words  which  con- 
flicted with  his  new  doctrines. 

Having  failed  to  influence  the  rebel  josiah  Cox 
leaders,  Mr.  Cox  decided  to  attempt  a 
separate  work  in  some  place  removed 
from  their  influence.  To  this  end  he 
visited  several  places,  and  in  March 
1862  found  himself  at  Hankow,  whither 
the  Revs.  Griffith  John  and  Robert 


158  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Wilson  of  the  London  Mission  had 
preceded  him.  One  day  soon  after  his 
arrival  Mr.  Cox  climbed  to  the  top  of 
the  Tortoise  Hill  and  thence  looked 
down  on  the  ancient  city  of  Hanyang, 
just  rising  from  the  desolation  of  the 
Rebellion  ; on  the  far-stretching  walls 
of  Wuchang,  a former  capital  of  the 
Empire,  and  the  seat  to  this  day  of  the 
Provincial  Government ; and  on  Han- 
kow, the  greatest  trading  centre  in 
Central  China. 

“ The  sight  of  these  vast  multitudes,”  he  wrote, 
“ and  the  thought  of  their  spiritual  darkness,  stirred 
my  spirit  and  led  me  to  prayer  ; and  in  that  prayer 
was  the  commencement  of  the  mission.” 

“ The  sanctified  common-sense  of  Mr. 
Cox  perceived  that  this  place  was  the 
key  of  Central  China,  and  he  wrote 
home  to  the  Committee  proposing  the 
establishment  of  a mission  centre,  and 
asking  for  seven  new  men — ‘ one  trained 
for  educational  work,  one  a medical 
missionary,  and,  before  all,  one  man  of 
high  literary  qualifications.’  The  Com- 
mittee sanctioned  the  scheme,  and  the 
work  began.” 

William  Arthur,  then  one  of  the 


Photo  lyl  [TT'.  A.  Corndby. 

THE  FIRST  PROTESTANT  CONVERT  IN  CENTRAL  CHINA. 

Chu  Shao-an  and  his  wife. 

[p.  159 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  South  China  159 

Missionary  Secretaries,  wrote  to  Mr. 

Cox,  saying  that  he  might  be  assured 
that  as  soon  as  the  Committee  could 
satisfy  themselves  that  Providence  had 
given  them  the  comrades  that  Mr.  Cox 
needed,  they  should  be  sent. 

Meanwhile  Chii  Shao-an,^  after  under-  The  Fkst 

. IT.  1 A.  1 Protestant  Con- 

going  much  distress  and  even  actual  vert  in  Mtd^ 
torture  at  the  hands  of  the  rebels,  who 
at  various  times  had  captured  and  re- 
leased him,  started  to  bring  his  mother 
to  Hankow.  But  alas  ! she  died  on 
the  way,  and  he  arrived  in  a state  of 
utter  desolation.  This  was  God’s  oppor- 
tunity, and  the  young  man  was  led  in 
a spirit  of  curiosity  to  the  hall  where 
Griffith  John  was  preaching  the  Gospel. 

He  was  interested  in  the  message,  be- 
came a sincere  believer,  and  was  the  first 
Protestant  convert  baptised  in  Hupeh-— 
probably  the  first  in  all  inland  China. 

• Mr.  Cox  having  previously  studied  Chu  Becomes 
Cantonese,  and  now  needing  to  learn 
Mandarin,  was  at  this  time  seeking  for 
a teacher,  and  Mr  Chu  undertook  the 
task.  Soon  the  two  men  were  drawn 
together  in  soul ; and  with  the  ready 

^ See  page  166. 


i6o  The  Call  of  Cathay 

consent  of  Griffith  John,  the  teacher  was 
ere  long  promoted  to  the  position  of 
colleague  to  the  missionary  in  his  work. 
Just  before  this  appointment  was  made 
Mr.  Chii  endured  severe  temptation. 
As  the  country  was  becoming  pacified, 
lands  were  being  reclaimed  by  their 
old  owners  through  the  merchant  guilds. 
So  Chii  approached  his  guild  with  a 
view  to  recovering  his  lands,  but  the 
heads  of  the  guild  refused  to  help  him 
unless  he  renouneed  Christianity.  His 
answer  is  memorable  : “ The  property 
may  go.  I believe  in  Jesus,  and  shall 
worship  Him  all  the  days  of  my  life.” 
And  this  he  did,  serving  Christ  with 
unswerving  loyalty,  first  as  an  evan- 
gelist, and  from  1875  as  a minister, 
till  his  death  in  1899. 

A Missionary  When  a site  had  been  bought  in  Han- 

Reconnaissance.  ^ chapel  erected,  Mr.  Chii  was 

left  in  charge,  while  Mr.  Cox  took  a 
journey  into  the  Hunan  Province,  with 
a view  to  choosing  a centre  for  opera- 
tions there.  Hostility  to  foreigners  was 
not  then  so  strong  in  Hunan  as  it  subse- 
quently became,  but,  as  the  support  of 
the  Home  Churches  was  not  given  to 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  i6i 

the  scheme,  Mr.  Cox  was  compelled  to 
lay  aside  the  idea  and  limit  his  work 
to  Hankow.  A later  journey  into  the 
Kiangsi  Province  did  indeed  result  in  the 
purchase  of  a site  at  Kiukiang,  but  as  the 
Missionary  Committee  could  not  see  its 
way  to  use  it,  it  was  transferred  to  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  America. 

Meanwhile,  God  had  laid  his  hand  on  The  First 
a young  doctor,  F.  Porter  Smith.  Edu- 
cated  at  Wesley  College,  Taunton,  he  had  ^i^'China. 
had  a brilliant  career  at  King’s  College, 

London,  and  had  settled  in  practice 
when  he  heard  the  call  to  China.  He 
arrived  at  Hankow  in  May  1864  ; and 
though  he  was  only  able  to  spend  six 
years  in  the  work,  owing  to  the  effects 
of  the  climate  on  his  constitution,  to 
him  belongs  the  undying  honour  of  being 
the  first  medical  missionary  to  work  in 
Central  China.  And  what  a work  he 
did  ! Two  months  after  his  arrival  he 
began  seeing  patients  in  a small  Chinese 
house,  and  two  other  such  houses  were 
used  as  wards.  Owing  to  the  novelty 
of  the  work  nearly  19,000  patients  were 
seen  in  the  first  year,  and  though  in 
the  second  year  the  number  dropped 

6 


**  The  Hospital 
cf  Alhpervad- 
ing  Love/' 


David  Hill. 


162  The  Call  of  Cathay 

to  9,000  there  was  really  no  diminution 
of  the  work,  because  in  that  year  the 
cases  brought  for  treatment  were  of  a 
more  serious  nature.  In  1866  the  first 
hospital  was  opened,  and  the  sign-board 
“ Hospital  of  All-pervading  Love  ” for 
the  first  time  hung  out  upon  a Chinese 
street.  It  may  be  truly  said  that  that  sign 
is  now  known  throughout  Central  China. 

In  1870  Dr.  E.  P.  Hardey  arrived  in 
Hankow  to  take  up  Dr.  Smith’s  work 
while  the  latter  went  on  furlough.  But 
even  the  change  failed  to  restore  Dr. 
Smith’s  health,  and  he  could  not  re- 
turn to  China.  In  1875  Dr.  Hardey’s 
health  failed  also,  and  as  no  other 
doctor  was  available,  the  hospital  was 
closed,  and  remained  so  until  the  arrival 
of  Dr.  Sydney  Rupert  Hodge  in  1887. 

David  Hill  and  William  Scarborough 
had  landed  in  Hankow  in  1865. 

The  first  task  that  David  Hill  essayed 
was  to  occupy  Wuchang.  But  the 
officials,  who  lived  there  in  hundreds, 
had  no  intention  of  having  a foreigner 
in  their  midst,  and  it  was  not  till  March 
1867  that  a little  house  up  a narrow 
passage  was  rented  for  use  as  a chapel 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  163 

and  dispensary,  and  as  a home  for 
Mr.  Hill.  Two  months  later  the  first 
eonvert  was  baptised.  During  the  same 
year,  one  morning  when  Mr.  Hill  was 
across  at  Hankow,  the  great  powder 
magazine  at  Wuchang  exploded ; houses 
were  wrecked  on  all  sides,  shot  and  shell 
whistled  through  the  air,  and  many 
persons  were  killed.  One  fragment  of 
shell,  indeed,  flew  into  Mr.  Hill’s  room 
at  the  exact  spot  where  he  usually  sat 
studying.  The  aid  which  Mr.  Hill  and 
Dr.  Smith  rendered  to  the  injured  did 
much  to  win  popular  approval  for  their 
work. 

About  this  time  a chapel  was  opened  Openings  at 
in  Hanyang,  and  thus  the  three  great  Wu^uehf 
cities  were  occupied  for  Christ  by  the 
Methodist  Church.  But  of  course  this 
could  not  satisfy  the  zeal  of  these  de- 
voted workers.  They  had  already  sent 
out  a band  of  Chinese  evangelists  into 
the  regions  around,  and  early  in  1870 
one  of  these  men,  while  working  near 
Wusueh,  was  attacked , and  all  his  books 
destroyed.  Feeling  that  he  must  pro- 
tect the  man,  David  Hill  mentioned 
the  matter  to  the  county  mandarin. 


164  The  Call  of  Cathay 

but  this  official  angrily  refused  to 
interfere.  On  his  return  to  Hankow, 
Mr.  Hill  mentioned  this  rudeness  to  the 
Consul,  who  referred  to  it  casually 
in  a letter  to  the  British  Minister  at 
Peking.  The  Minister  happened  just 
then  to  be  trying  to  prove  to  the  Chinese 
Foreign  Office  that  the  county  man- 
darins were  not  anxious  to  keep  treaty 
regulations,  and  used  the  Kwangtsi 
case  as  an  illustration.  The  Foreign 
Office,  being  nettled,  sent  down  word 
that  the  Kwangtsi  mandarin  was  to  be 
dismissed  at  once.  The  immediate  out- 
come was  a desire  on  the  part  of  a large 
number  of  Chinese  to  ally  themselves 
with  the  powerful  foreigner,  and  the 
easiest  way  to  do  this  seemed  to  be  to 
enter  his  Church.  In  .response  to  an 
appeal  from  a group  of  these  men  (whose 
real  motive  was  of  course  carefully  con- 
cealed) it  was  decided  to  commence  work 
in  that  neighbourhood,  and  David  Hill 
was  chosen  by  his  colleagues  for  the 
task.  How  farthfully  he  and  his  Chinese 
helpers  worked  may  be  seen  from  the 
fact  that  in  that  region,  where  at  the 
time  of  his  arrival  there  were  neither 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  165 

hospitals,  churches,  nor  schools,  no 
members,  and  few  sincere  inquirers, 
there  are  now  three  large  circuits,  em- 
bracing five  counties,  with  seventeen 
churehes,  each  one  of  which  has  been 
opened  in  a place  where  David  Hill 
evangelised  in  those  pioneer  days.  The 
first  baptisms  took  place  in  August 
1872,  at  Wusueh.  At  the  Synod  of 
1909  there  were  455  members  in  the 
three  circuits,  with  191  on  trial,  while 
many  are  now  Avith  David  Hill  before 
the  Throne  of  God. 

It  is  outside  the  province  of  this  The  Shansi 
volume  to  refer  at  length  to  the  great 
work  that  David  Hill  did  in  North 
China  during  the  great  famine  from 
1878  to  1880.^  Humanly  speaking,  its 
greatest  result  was  the  conversion  of 
Pastor  Hsi,  leading  as  that  did  to  the 
establishment  of  a great  Avork. 

While  Mr.  Hill  AVaS  aAYay,  his  col-  Determined 
leagues,  noAv  increased  in  numbers, 
pushed  on  Avith  the  Avork  despite  not  a 
little  opposition  ; and  some  of  them  gave 

1 The  reader  may  well  be  urged  to  study  the  story 
of  that  work  as  told  by  Mrs.  Howard  Taylor  in  One 
of  China’s  Scholars. 


1 66  The  Call  of  Cathay 

themselves  up  to  the  task  of  heralding 
Christ’s  name  where  it  was  not  then 
known,  both  in  Mr.  Hill’s  old  eircuit 
and  up  the  Han  River.  This  work  was 
not  without  its  excitements.  A col- 
porteur who  was  sent  to  preach  in  Wu- 
chang Hsien,  on  the  banks  of  the  Yangtse, 
was  driven  out.  As  this  man  had  some 
skill  as  a herbalist,  Mr.  Hill  on  his  return 
started  him  in  business  in  this  hostile 
town ; but  the  semi-official  gentry  saw 
through  the  plan,  and  summarily  ejected 
the  man  and  his  possessions.  On  his 
next  visit,  the  colporteur  found  placards 
on  the  walls  aimed  at  himself,  and  a 
little  later  a plot  was  laid  to  murder  his 
father.  George  Miles  went  to  the  scene 
of  the  trouble,  and  after  much  argument 
secured  what  seemed  a reliable  promise 
from  the  clan  that  the  old  man  should 
be  protected,  but  the  very  same  night 
an  attempt  was  made  not  only  to  murder 
the  old  man,  but  also  to  murder  Mr. 
Miles  himself.  For  over  an  hour  the 
matter  hung  in  the  balances,  but  the 
mob  finally  listened  to  reason,  and 
retired. 

In  1880  an  opportunity  presented 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  167 

itself  to  the  missionaries  to  begin  work  Entering  Teian. 

in  Teian,  which  lies  on  the  banks  of 

the  Fu  River,  itself  a tributary  of  the 

Han.  As  a colporteur  (a  native  of  the 

Kiangsi  Province)  was  selling  his  books 

in  the  streets  of  this  town,  he  met  a 

trader  who  was  from  his  own  province. 

This  common  bond  led  to  a hearty 
friendship  between  the  two  men,  and 
also  to  provision  in  the  trader’s  house 
for  the  colporteur ; and  when  the  latter 
announced  that  J.  W.  Brewer  intended 
to  visit  Teian,  this  trader  influenced 
others  in  the  town  to  place  the  Guild 
Hall  at  Mr.  Brewer’s  disposal  during 
his  stay.  Comfortable  as  the  hall  was, 
it  obviously  could  not  be  the  home  of  a 
permanent  work,  and  so  Mr.  Brewer 
sought  to  rent  premises.  This  was  a 
hard  task,  but  at  last  a man  came  who 
was  the  unfortunate  owner  of  a haunted 
house,  which  had  been  long  unoccupied. 

Without  hesitation  Mr.  Brewer  agreed 
to  take  it.  But  what  pleased  the  mis- 
sionary did  not  please  the  gentry,  and 
the  most  influential  men  in  the  town 
were  summoned  together  to  discuss  the 
situation.  They  finally  chose  a young 


68 


Hanchwan. 


Riots  at  Tciar. 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

man  named  Chang  ^ to  visit  the  mis- 
sionary and  study  his  ways,  with  a 
view  to  finding  something  that  would 
serve  as  a reason  for  turning  him  out. 
Chang  visited  the  missionary,  but  the 
outcome  of  the  visits  was  not  what 
the  gentry  intended,  for  Chang  became 
an  inquirer,  a convert,  and  ultimately 
a preacher. 

The  next  year  witnessed  the  occupa- 
tion of  Hanchwan,  a county  town  up  the 
Han  on  the  way  to  Teian.  At  that 
time  a Chinese  evangelist  went  to  reside 
in  the  town,  and  he  was  followed  in 
1886  by  George  Miles,  who  was  the  first 
foreign  resident  in  that  place,  and  as 
such  had  to  encounter  much  ill-will, 
which  showed  itself  in  numberless  petty 
annoyances.  This  town  is  now  the 
head  of  a circuit. 

Meanwhile,  matters  had  not  been 
peaceful  at  Teian.  Mr.  Brewer  had 
been  succeeded  by  Joseph  Bell  and 
C.  W.  Mitchil  (a  layman  who  worked  in 
Hupeh  at  his  own  charges  between 
1875  and  his  death  in  1902,  and  had  a 
unique  reputation  as  a seller  of  Gospels 

1 Pronounced  Dsarng. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  169^ 

and  tracts),  and  those  two  brethren 
had  purchased  some  premises  to  take 
the  place  of  the  haunted  house.  The 
purchase  Avas  made  openly  and  no  one 
had  raised  any  objection,  but  Avhen  the 
first  class-meeting  AA^as  being  held  in 
the  neAA'  chapel  it  AA^as  interrupted  by 
Auolent  bloAA^s  on  the  front  door  and 
Amlleys  of  stones  throAvn  on  the  roof. 
Regarding  the  matter  as  mere  horseplay, 
tAA^o  of  the  members  Avent  out  to  speak 
to  the  croAA^d,  Avith  the  result  that  one 
of  the  tAvo  AA^as  very  severely  handled. 
A message  to  the  mandarin  brought 
help ; he  issued  orders  for  seven  men 
to  be  arrested.  But  the  gentry  forbad 
the  police  to  execute  the  Avarrants,  and 
in  China  the  gentry  are  poAA^erful.  En- 
couraged by  this  insult  to  the  mandarin, 
the  rioters  waited  till  the  Sunday,  Avhen 
they  reneAved  the  attack  at  daylight. 
Mr.  Bell,  hearing  a noise,  Avent  out  of 
his  room  to  see  Avhat  AA^as  the  matter, 
and  Avith  some  difficulty  got  back  to 
Mr.  Mitchil,  Avho  joined  him  in  a hurried 
retreat  through  the  back  door  of  the 
premises.  David  Hill  Avent  up  to  advise 
AAuth  his  brethren  as  to  the  settlement 

6* 


Troubles  at 
Wusueh. 


170  The  Call  of  Cathay 

of  the  trouble,  and,  Avith  eharaeteristic 
thoughtfulness,  sent  the  young  men  to 
HankoAv  for  a ehange  Avhile  he  eondueted 
the  negotiations.  But  the  mob  was  in 
no  humour  for  peaee.  They  frightened 
the  mandarin  into  releasing  all  the  men 
whom  he  had  arrested,  and  made  a fresh 
attaek  on  the  premises,  demolishing  all 
that  remained  intaet.  Just  at  this 
time  Mr.  Bell’s  health  began  to  fail, 
and  as  the  negotiations  were  protraeted 
over  a year  he  did  not  see  Teian 
again.  He  died  on  July  6,  1885,  the  day 
before  the  restored  Teian  Chapel 
opened. 

Nor  Avere  things  quiet  in  the  Wusueh 
Cireuit.  The  first  trouble  there  oceurred 
in  this  Avise.  The  brother  of  one  of  the 
Christians  had  died,  and  his  body  was  in 
due  eourse  eommitted  to  the  grave.  On 
the  third  day  after  the  funeral,  AA^hieh 
had  of  eourse  been  eondueted  on  Chris- 
tian lines,  and  without  eonsultation  with 
neeromaneers,  a man  in  the  village  AA^as 
taken  ill,  and  a rumour  spread  that 
this  Avas  due  to  evil  infiuenees  proeeed- 
ing  from  the  Christian  grave.  A 
demiand  AA^as  made  that  the  coffin  should 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  171 

be  disinterred,  and  when  the  Christians 
objected  it  was  dug  up  by  the  crowd. 
Such  an  act  is  in  China  a capital  offence, 
so  that  it  was  not  long  before  the 
offenders  were  made  to  realise  that  their 
position  was  untenable,  and  the  coffin 
was  reinterred. 

In  that  same  year  a new  chapel  was 
built  at  Chichow  in  the  same  circuit,  and 
on  the  opening  day  it  was  attacked  by  a 
mob  and  much  damage  done.  In  this 
case  the  authorities  intervened  at  once, 
and  compensation  was  paid,  Thomas 
Bramfitt  on  his  part  asking  for  the 
release  of  the  ringleaders. 

Then,  a very  little  later,  there  oc- 
curred in  this  circuit  a case  which  has 
become  almost  historic  in  missionary 
annals.  For  the  Lan  clan  in  entering 
up  the  family  registers  (most  important 
documents  in  China,  enrolment  carry- 
ing with  it  many  rights)  wrote  off  all 
the  Christians  as  dead.  All  attempts 
by  the  missionaries  to  make  the  clan 
yield  were  in  vain,  so  the  matter  was 
taken  to  the  courts,  and  at  last,  through 
the  intervention  of  the  British  Ambas- 
sador, an  Imperial  Decree  was  issued 


The  Rights  of 
Chinese  ChriS' 
tians. 


17^  The  Call  of  Cathay 

in  1892  stating  that  native  Christians 
must  be  treated  exactly  as  the  other  mem- 
bers of  a clan. 

of  The  medical  work  in  Hankow  had  not 
yet  been  resumed  when  Dr.  Arthur 
Morley  arrived  in  China  (1886),  for 
the  express  purpose  of  commencing 
medical  work  at  Teian.  His  first  duty 
was  to  turn  the  ruins  left  by  the 
rioters  into  wards  for  his  patients 
and  rooms  for  himself.  When  all  was 
completed  and  ready  for  occupation, 
the  doctor  invited  six  of  the  gentry 
to  a feast,  but  every  one  of  them  de- 
clined to  countenance  the  foreigner. 
In  the  same  year.  Miss  Sugden  arrived 
in  Hankow  to  take  over  the  medical 
work  among  women  which  had  been 
commenced  by  Mrs.  North.  So  when 
in  the  following  year  Dr.  Hodge  reached 
Hankow,  to  recommence  the  work 
for  men,  one  of  his  first  duties  was 
to  superintend  the  building  of  the 
Hospital  for  Women  which  was  sub- 
scribed for  by  the  women  of  Metho- 
dism as  their  memorial  of  the  Jubilee 
of  Queen  Victoria.  The  erection  of  his 
own  hospital  followed,  and  the  Hankow 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  173 

Medical  Mission  was  once  again  equipped 
with  both  workers  and  plant. 

While  on  furlough  in  England  in 
1897-8,  Dr.  Hodge  advocated  two  im- 
portant advances  in  the  work — the 
enlargement  of  the  hospital  to  provide 
for  double  the  number  of  patients,  and 
the  sending  out  of  a second  doctor  to 
assist  him.  In  both  these  schemes  he 
was  successful,  and  when  he  returned 
to  China  he  brought  with  him  money 
to  erect  the  new  buildings,  and  was 
accompanied  by  Dr.  R.  T.  Booth,  M.B., 
as  his  colleague.  The  Methodist  Chris- 
tian Endeavour ers  of  Ireland  undertook 
to  support  Dr.  Booth,  and,  in  addition, 
help  in  other  ways  to  carry  on  the 
medical  work. 

In  1890  young  Robert  Bone,  who  Deaths, 
had  been  in  China  for  only  eight  months, 
died  of  dysentery.  And  in  the  next  year 
Mr.  Tollerton,  after  three  years  of 
service,  died  of  smallpox.  In  that 
same  year  Mr.  Miles  effected  a peaceful 
entrance  into  Anlu,  a large  prefectural 
city  more  than  two  hundred  miles  from 
Hankow,  which  had  till  then  been  visited 
only  by  itinerating  missionaries  and 


The  Hostile 
Hunanes ; 


174  The  Call  of  Cathay 

colporteurs.  And  then  like  a bolt  from 
the  blue  came  the  Wusueh  riots.  To 
this  we  must  refer  at  some  little 
length,  for  the  reason  that  it  came  to 
the  missionaries  of  our  own  and 
other  Churches  as  a call  to  evangelise 
Hunan. 

It  is  well  known  how  deep  and  con- 
tinued was  the  hostility  of  the  Hunanese 
to  everything  of  foreign  origin.  Des- 
pite all  the  treaties  that  the  Imperial 
Government  had  concluded,  every 
worker  who  entered  that  provinee  found 
himself  absolutely  debarred  from  prose- 
cuting his  work.  Men  like  Adam  Dor- 
ward,  of  the  China  Inland  Mission,  ^ 
who  gave  themselves  prayerfully  to  the 
task,  were  in  danger  of  death  every  day 
they  spent  in  the  province.  The  mis- 
sionary everywhere  met  with  sullen 
contempt,  insolence,  or  violence.  Word 
was  sent  on  from  town  to  town  that  the 
hated  foreigner  was  coming.  Often  he 
found  the  city  gates  closed  in  his  face 
when  he  reached  his  destination. 

It  is  now  clear  that  this  antagonism 

1 See  Pioneer  Work  in  Hunan,  by  Marshall 
Broomhallj  B.A. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  175 

did  not  originate  among  the  populace. 

They  were  originally  as  indifferent  as  The'* Hunan 
the  people  in  other  provinces.  But  the 
semi-official  gentry  and  scholars,  by 
the  careful  dissemination  of  the  most 
abominable  lies,  caused  this  feeling  of 
hostility  to  take  root ; and  then  by 
ballads,  broadsheets,  and  cartoons  nur- 
tured its  growth.  The  progress  from 
such  teaching  to  the  call  for  the  de- 
struction of  foreigners  was  easy,  and 
the  people  proved  apt  pupils.  The  lead- 
ing spirit  in  this  malicious  campaign 
was  one  Chow  Han,  who  in  his  earlier 
manhood  was  a soldier  of  much  prowess, 
but  who  fell  into  disgrace  and  was  dis- 
missed from  the  army.  What  it  was 
that  caused  him  to  employ  his  enforced 
leisure  in  attacking  Christianity  will 
probably  never  be  known.  So  success- 
ful was  his  campaign  that  the  placards 
and  ballads  were  soon  scattered  through 
the  empire,  and  the  firstfruits  of  their 
malign  influence  was  a series  of  riots 
in  the  Yangtse  valley,  in  which,  early 
in  the  series,  was  the  murder  at  Wusueh 
of  William  Argent,  of  the  Wesleyan 
Joyful  News  Migsion,  and  Mr.  Green, 


Riots  at 
Wusuch. 


176  The  Call  of  Cathay 

of  the  Chinese  Imperial  Customs  Service, 
on  June  5,  1891. 

For  some  little  time  previous,  evil 
rumours  had  been  circulated  in  the 
town,  but  as  there  were  no  signs  of 
danger  the  men  were  away  visiting  the 
churches.  On  the  day  itself  a man 
was  seen  carrying  four  babies  in  two 
baskets  through  the  streets.  He  was 
taking  them  to  the  Roman  Catholic 
Foundling  Home  at  Kiukiang,  but  a 
man  on  the  street  yelled  that  he  was 
taking  the  babies  to  be  killed  by  the 
foreigners.  A crowd  at  once  gathered, 
and  the  basket-bearer  was  dragged  to 
one  of  the  yamens,  but  the  magistrate 
refused  to  take  the  charge.  This  caused 
some  disorder,  during  which  one  of  the 
babies  was  trampled  to  death.  Roused 
to  fury  by  this  untoward  event,  the 
mob  at  once  rushed  off  to  attack  our 
mission.  Mrs.  Roden,  Mrs.  Warren,  and 
Mrs.  Protheroe,  with  their  four  chil- 
dren, were  in  the^  houses.  Their  lives 
were  in  great  peril,  but  they  ultimately 
found  a safe  refuge  in  a yamen.  Mean- 
while, news  of  the  disturbance  reached 
William  Argent,  who  was  just  about 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  177 

to  embark  for  Hankow,  and  Mr.  Green. 

They  at  once  dashed  off  to  the  rescue 
of  the  ladies,  and  were  met  by  the  mob. 

Just  as  he  reached  the  chapel.  Argent  Murder  of 
was  struck  a deadly  blow  with  a carry-  ArgentT 
ing-pole,  and  then  he  was  battered  to 
death  where  he  lay.  Green  ran  a little 
farther  and  reached  a pond,  in  which 
he  stood  up  to  his  neck.  For  two  or 
three  hours  the  people  threw  stones  at 
him.  Just  after  dark  a mandarin  came 
and  promised  to  protect  him  if  he  would 
emerge.  The  promise  was  no  doubt 
sincere,  but  the  hunted  man  had  scarcely 
landed  when  the  mob  drove  away  the 
mandarin  and  killed  thh  foreigner. 

Of  the  settlement  of  the  trouble  a Decree  of 
there  is  no  need  to  write,  save  to  say 
that  the  great  result  was  the  issue  by 
the  Imperial  Government  of  a decree 
that  Christianity  should  he  counted  as 
one  of  the  tolerated  religions  of  China, 
that  missionaries  should  be  protected,  and 
that  the  converts  should  not  he  persecuted. 

This  decree  marks  an  epoch  in  mis- 
sionary history,  but  the  fact  that  it  did 
not  meet  with  popular  consent,  or  at 
any  rate  with  the  approval  of  the  literary 


Educational 

Work. 


178  The  Call  of  Cathay 

classes,  was  soon  seen.  In  November, 
when  the  houses  for  the  missionaries 
at  Teian  were  nearing  completion,  a 
serious  disturbance  was  created  by  the 
students  assembled  for  the  B.A.  exam- 
ination, and  Mr.  Warren  and  Dr.  Morley 
were  severely  handled. 

As  the  years  had  passed,  two  impor- 
tant educational  institutions  had  been 
coming  to  their  full  development — the 
High  School  and  the  Girls’  Boarding- 
school.  The  need  for  higher  edueation 
on  Christian  lines  seems  to  have  been 
realised  by  our  pioneer,  Josiah  Cox,  as 
early  as  1863,  but  it  was  not  found 
possible  to  commenee  such  a work  until 
1884,  when  Dr.  W.  T.  A.  Barber 
opened  the  Wuchang  Boys’  High  School. 
The  attempt  was  made  under  great 
difficulties,  for  at  the  same  time  the 
Viceroy  of  Liang  Hu  [ix,  Hupeh  and 
Hunan),  realising  the  need,  opened  a 
large,  well-equipped  College  in  the  city. 
The  Hanyang  Girls’  Boarding-school  was 
opened  in  1898,  in  memory  of  David 
Hill,  and  in  response  to  one  of  his  last 
requests.  School  work  is  of  necessity 
monotonous  in  its  nature  and  furnishes 


THE  “ DAVID  HILL  ” BLIND  SCHOOL,  HANKOW. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  179 

few  incidents  that  can  be  recorded  in 
a general  survey  of  the  work.  The 
value  of  these  institutions  as  both  edu- 
cational and  spiritual  forces  has  been 
enlarged  upon  in  a previous  chapter,  and 
it  becomes  more  noteworthy  as  the  years 
pass.  A third  institution  that  calls 
for  like  brief  mention  is  the  David  Hill 
School  for  the  Blind,  which  remains  as 
the  great  monument  of  the  philan- 
thropy and  love  of  David  Hill  for  the 
poor,  the  despised,  and  the  neglected. 
Each  of  these  three  institutions  has 
from  time  to  time  added  to  its  premises, 
and  each  is  worthy  to  rank  alongside  the 
similar  institutions  established  by  other 
missions.  Later  years  have  seen  the 
establishment  of  three  boarding-schools 
for  Christian  boys,  where  a sound 
Chinese  education  is  offered  at  the 
lowest  possible  fees.  In  Wuchang  a 
Training  Institution  for  preachers  and 
a Normal  School  for  teachers  began 
work  in  1901  in  a tentative  way, 
with  a three  months’  course  of  study. 
Three  years  later  arrangements  were 
made  for  the  students  to  receive  a 
full  three  years’  course  of  training.-  It 


I Ho  The  Call  of  Cathay 

must  be  confessed  that  these  institutions 
have  not  yet  met  with  the  success  we 
desire,  but  the  future  is  bright  with 
hope.  The  elementary  schools  for  boys 
and  girls  throughout  the  District  are 
a source  of  anxiety,  for  there  is  grave 
reason  to  fear  that  in  this  department 
of  our  work  we  shall  be  outstripped 
by  the  Government  elementary  schools 
which  are  being  opened  in  every  town 
in  the  land.  Our  position  is  the  more 
precarious  as  the  Chinese  Board  of 
Education  refuses  to  recognise  foreign- 
managed  schools  in  any  way,  or  to  allow 
their  scholars  to  compete  for  entrance 
to  the  Higher  Grade  Schools  or  the 
Normal  Schools.  Since  the  Government 
Schools  are  non-Christian  in  tone  and 
ideals,  it  will  be  a sad  day  for  our  work 
if  we  are  prevented  from  continuing 
our  elementary  schools,  for  they  have  in 
the  past  proved  valuable  aids  in  the 
attempts  we  are  constantly  making  to 
gain  an  entrance  to  heathen  households, 
and  they  have  also  yielded  not  a few 
bright  young  converts  to  the  Church. 
The  latest  addition  to  the  institutions 
of  the  District  is  the  Home  for  Destitute 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  i8i 

Boys  founded  by  J.  K.  Hill  at  Suichow, 
which  meets  a great  need. 

The  year  1892  witnessed  the  opening 
of  a chapel  at  Liu  Tsu  Yiu  in  the  Tayeh 
Circuit,  which  was  the  first  chapel  en- 
tirely paid  for  by  our  Chinese  Christians. 
The  next  year  saw  what  must  be  re- 
garded, apart  from  the  early  pioneer 
journey  of  Josiah  Cox,  as  the  beginning 
of  our  work  in  Hunan,  for  in  that  year 
Chang  Yi-tsz  took  the  journey  which 
is  described  in  the  next  chapter.  Three 
years  later  a series  of  visits  was  made 
by  various  missionaries  to  the  towns 
in  South  Hupeh  which  adjoin  the  Hunan 
border.  Some  of  these  workers  be- 
longed to  our  own  mission,  and  in  1898 
Wesleyan  chapels  were  opened  in 
Tsungyang  and  Tungcheng,  four  other 
towns  being  occupied  by  the  London 
and  American  Baptist  Missions.  Of 
these  towns  Tungcheng  lies  nearest  to 
Hunan. 

Ere  even  this  step  towards  the  ac- 
complishment of  the  long-cherished 
scheme  had  been  taken,  the  soul  of  one 
who  for  years  had  prayed  and  longed 
for  the  opening  of  Hunan  had  passed  to 


Advance  To- 
wards Hunan. 


Death  of 
David  Hill. 


182  The  Call  of  Cathay 

its  rest.  David  Hill  died  on  April  18, 
1896.  As  the  years  pass,  it  becomes 
increasingly  evident  that  David  Hill, 
whether  as  superintendent  of  a circuit, 
or  chairman  of  the  District,  was  a wdse 
master-builder.  He  knew  no  basis  for 
his  work  save  the  foundation  once  laid, 
and  on  that  foundation  he  built  prayer- 
fully with  the  most  precious  materials 
he  could  find.  Whether  as  a pioneer 
worker  in  the  country  districts  or  as  a 
patient  struggler  with  reactionary  forces 
in  the  towns,  whether  as  a preacher  of 
the  Gospel  to  Christians  and  inquirers, 
or  as  an  administrator  of  charity  to  the 
poor  and  the  famine-stricken,  whether 
in  social  intercourse  with  the  foreigners 
dwelling  in  this  land,  or  in  quiet  con- 
verse with  Confucian  literati,  the  record 
stands  that  he  ever  revealed  by  word 
and  deed  the  graces  of  the  Master 
Whom  he  served.  The  end  was  char- 
acteristic of  the  life.  Touched  by  a 
sense  of  the  misery  of  the  poor,  the  wife 
of  a highly  placed  Chinese  official 
placed  at  Mr.  Hill’s  disposal  some  money 
given  by  herself  and  others.  His 
friends  had  noticed  how  tired  he  looked, 


Pi  182j 


DAVID  HILL. 

Beached  China,  1865.  Died,  April  18,  1896. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  183 

but  he  gladly  undertook  this  work,  and, 
of  course,  performed  it  personally. 

Finding  that  if  he  went  in  daylight  to 
those  whom  he  wished  to  reach  he 
was  besieged  by  scores  of  would-be 
recipients  of  the  bounty,  he  changed 
his  plan  and  commenced  going  round 
from  hut  to  hut  in  the  hours  just  after 
midnight,  waking  the  sleepers  and 
quietly  bestowing  the  alms.  There  is 
little  doubt  that  it  was  in  some  such 
service  as  this,  when  the  earth  was 
steaming  with  the  dank  vapours  of 
the  night,  that  the  lurking  typhus 
leaped  forth  from  its  lair  upon  his  en- 
feebled frame,  and  held  it  in  the  death- 
grip.  Yet  would  he  have  chosen  a 
better  death  than  that — proving  that 
Christian  love  can  conquer  calumny 
and  hate,  and  dying  in  the  act  of  self- 
denying  charity  to  the  poorest  and 
the  lost  ? It  was  a fitting  end. 

The  consolidation  and  extension  of  the  in  Dangers  Oft. 
work  in  the  older  circuits  was  through 
these  years  proceeding  steadily,  though 
not  without  opposition.  When  J.  K. 

Hill  attempted  to  secure  a permanent 
foothold  in  Chishui,  the  local  official 


184  The  Call  of  Cathay 

displayed  his  unfriendliness  by  allow- 
ing placards  against  the  foreign  religion 
to  be  freely  posted  in  the  town,  and 
by  ordering  the  landlord  to  reoccupy 
the  premises  and  evict  the  preacher. 
Seventy  of  the  gentry  also  met  at  a feast 
to  decide  what  steps  to  take  against  the 
mission,  but  on  an  appeal  to  the  Vice- 
roy the  mission  was  confirmed  in  its 
possession  of  the  property.  At  Lotien 
attempts  were  made  at  different  times 
to  murder  Mr.  Hill  and  Mr.  Scholes, 
but  on  each  occasion  the  missionary 
was  warned  in  time.  When  attempt- 
ing to  evangelise  Paoan  in  the  Tayeh 
Circuit,  W.  H.  Watson  and  the  writer 
were  attacked  by  an  angry  crowd.  And 
at  Hsingkwoh,  in  the  Wusueh  Circuit, 
C.  W.  Allan  barely  escaped  with  his 
life  from  a crowd  which  suddenly  broke 
into  the  chapel  when  he  was  paying 
one  of  his  regular  visits  to  the  town. 
The  chapel  had  no  back  door,  and  so 
Mr.  Allan  was  entrapped ; but  being 
of  a powerful  build,  he  was  able  to  make 
a dash  for  life.  His  sun-helmet  saved 
him  from  what  would  otherwise  have 
been  his  death-blow,  and  he  found 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  185 

refuge  in  a shop.  Unfortunately  it, 
too,  had  no  back  door  ; so  that  before 
long  Mr.  Allan  had  to  make  another 
dash,  but  this  time  with  such  success 
that  he  remained  safely  hidden  till  he 
was  rescued  by  the  mandarin. 

While  this  spirit  of  unrest  was  mani- 
festing itself  in  the  down-river  circuits, 
another  wave  of  excitement  swept  over 
the  Teian  Circuit.  Bands  of  armed 
men  entered  the  homes  of  the  members, 
spoiled  them,  of  their  goods  and  en- 
deavoured to  make  them  repudiate 
the  foreign  religion.  These  villains 
even  went  so  far  as  to  put  a price  on 
John  Berkin’s  head.  All  displays  of 
.mercy  on  the  part  of  the  missionaries 
and  converts  being  interpreted  as  signs 
of  powerlessness,  the  matter  was  re- 
luctantly placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
Consul  and  the  intervention  of  the 
Chinese  officials  secured. 

A year  later  there  was  another  out- 
break of  violence,  the  victim  this  time 
being  Hardy  Jowett,  and  the  aggressors 
being  a party  of  students.  The  be- 
ginner of  the  trouble  perhaps  only 
intended  to  indulge  in  a little  horseplay, 


More  Troubles 
at  Teian. 


1 86  The  Call  of  Cathay 

but  the  matter  soon  became  serious. 
After  being  repeatedly  struck  with  other 
missiles,  Mr.  Jowett  received  a blow 
on  the  side  of  the  head  from  a half- 
brick thrown  by  a Buddhist  monk.  For 
a moment  he  swayed,  but  managed  to 
get  into  a house  and  shut  the  door. 
To  his  horror  he  found  that  there  was 
no  back  door.  He  sat  down  to  rest 
for  a moment,  but  there  was  a sudden 
struggle  at  the  front.  Thinking  that 
the  crowd  was  breaking  in,  Mr.  Jowett 
made  a hole  in  the  mud  wall  at  the 
back  of  the  room  he  was  in,  and  es- 
caped towards  the  country.  Later  in 
the  day  he  learnt  that  the  struggling 
was  due,  not  to  the  crowd  entering  the 
house,  but  to  one  of  the  members  having 
boldly  faced  the  mob  and  deterred  them 
from  their  purpose. 

Early  in  1899  Dr.  Margaret  Bennett 
reached  Wuchang  with  a viev/  to  de- 
veloping a hospital  for  women  there. 
A small  hospital  was  opened  in  February 
1903,  and  its  value  was  at  once  recog- 
nised by  the  wives  and  daughters  of 
the  many  officials  in  that  neighbourhood. 
Five  months  later,  after  five  days  of 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  187 

suffering  from  a violent  disease,  Miss 
Bennett  died,  but  on  her  death-bed 
in  answer  to  a question  she  said,  “ No  ; 

I am  not  sorry,  but  glad  that  I came 
to  China.”  And  so  were  hundreds  of 
Chinese  women.  Other  hands  took  up 
the  work,  and  it  is  now  fully  established 
in  the  confidence  of  the  people. 

There  is  no  need  in  this  chapter  for  The  Boxer 
more  than  a passing  reference  to  the 
Boxer  uprising.  That  movement,  under 
the  auspices  of  a ruling  Manchu  clique, 
expended  its  strength  in  the  northern 
provinces.  In  Hupeh,  the  presence  of  a 
strong  Viceroy  secured  immunity  for  the 
missionaries  from  murder  or  serious 
attack,  though  it  naturally  failed  to 
secure  entire  freedom  from  persecution 
for  the  Chinese  Church. 

In  spite  of  the  troubles  of  the  year, 

1900  saw  the  opening  of  a new  hospital 
at  Teian,  where  Dr.  Morley  had  been 
faithfully  labouring  for  a dozen  years 
under  most  adverse  conditions.  The 
new  institution — one  of  the  best  ar- 
ranged and  most  convenient  country 
hospitals  in  Central  China — was  erected 
without  cost  to  the  Society,  being 


1 88  The  Call  of  Cathay 

the  gift  of  David  Hill  and  his  two 
brothers. 

The  new  hospital  was  opened  amid 
mu  eh  rejoieing.  This  time  the  ofheials 
and  people  vied  with  eaeh  other  in 
doing  honour  to  Dr.  Morley.  But 
when  later  in  the  year  a band  of 
Manehu  soldiers  passed  through  that 
town  on  their  way  to  join  the  Boxers, 
these  men,  assisted  by  the  loeal  rowdies, 
foreed  their  way  into  the  building, 
smashed  the  glass,  destroyed  the  wood- 
work, and  stole  all  that  they  eould 
carry  away.  It  is  interesting  to  know 
that  on  their  return  march  these  same 
men  stopped  at  Teian  to  beseech  Dr. 
Morley  to  dress  the  wounds  they  had  re- 
ceived at  the  hands  of  the  Allied  Forces! 

At  Chin-niu,  in  the  Tayeh  Circuit,  a 
mob  did  some  damage  to  our  chapel 
and  assaulted  the  wife  and  son  of  the 
preacher,  but  the  mandarin  was  prompt 
in  his  intervention  and  the  trouble 
ceased.  Other  officials  were  callous. 
The  house  of  one  of  the  Suichow  minis- 
ters, H.  B.  Sutton,  was  looted  of  all  it 
contained  and  then  destroyed.  An  old 
man  was  hanged  in  his  own  house,  but 


LATE  DR.  HODGE  PERFORMING  AN  OPERATION. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  189 

cut  down  by  friends  before  life  was  ex- 
tinct, and  two  inquirers  and  one  little 
boy  were  killed,  the  Suichow  officials 
in  no  way  interfering.  And  in  the 
Kwangtsi  Circuit  a chapel  was  destroyed. 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  Hsien  T‘ao- 
chen  (“Fairy  Peach  Mart”)  eighty- 
three  men  banded  themselves  together  by 
oath  not  to  leave  one  Christian’s  house 
standing,  and  the  date  was  actually 
fixed  for  the  murder  of  Lo  Yu-shan, 
who  was  afterwards  our  first  Chinese 
minister  in  Hunan.  But  with  the  change 
in  the  situation  at  Peking,  there  came 
a change  in  the  attitude  of  the  man- 
darins, and  matters  became  peaceful. 

The  year  1907  is  well  marked  in  the 
annals  of  Hupeh.  In  that  year  Hr. 
Tatchell  began  the  medical  work  at 
Tayeh,  and  Dr.  Cundall  began  similar 
work  at  Anlu.  On  July  21  of  that  Death  of 
year  Dr.  Hodge  died,  not  yet  fifty 
years  old,  but  literally  worn  out  through 
the  prodigality  with  which  he  had  given 
himself  for  twenty  years  to  the  relieving 
of  distress  and  woe.  Let  it  never  be 
forgotten  that  as  he  lay  dying,  oppressed 
with  the  task  of  maintaining  the  finances 


Developing 
the  Medical 
Work, 


190  The  Call  of  Cathay 

of  the  hospital  and  securing  the  necessary 
equipment,  he  said,  “ Oh  that  with  my 
dying  breath  I could  arouse  the  con- 
science of  Methodism  ! Oh  that  she 
wmuld  arise,  that  those  who  are  willing 
to  work  could  work  unhindered  1 Always 
this  burden  of  finance  ! ” 

Since  Dr.  Hodge  died,  the  worh  has 
developed  along  lines  laid  doAvn  by  him, 
and  important  structural  alterations 
have  been  made  in  accordance  with 
his  carefully  devised  plans,  under  the 
supervision  of  Drs.  Booth  and  Tatchell. 
The  fact  that  scarcely  any  important 
change  has  had  to  be  made  in  the  original 
plans  is  a striking  testimony  to  the 
care  wdth  which  Dr.  Hodge  thought  out 
the  details.  During  1909  long-cherished 
hopes  were  realised.  The  hospital  was 
enlarged,  so  that  it  is  now  capable  of 
accommodating  eighty  patients.  Rooms 
for  private  patients  and  two  isolation 
wards  were  added,  the  Consumptive 
Ward  w^as  enlarged,  and  several  other 
great  improvements  effected.  In  ad- 
dition to  all  this,  the  “ Hodge  Memorial 
Nurses’  Home  ” w^as  erected  to  provide 
accommodation  for  the  large  nursing 


DR.  ETHEL  ROWLEY  AND  GROUP  OF  CHINESE  NURSES. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  19 1 

staff — a scheme  Dr.  Hodge  greatly  de- 
sired to  carry  through.  This  was  the 
first  hospital  in  Central  China  to  realise 
the  possibility  of  using  trained  male 
nurses.  So  well  has  the  plan  succeeded 
that  it  is  now  regarded  by  other  hos- 
pitals as  a training  school  for  such 
nurses,  and  requests  for  suitably  trained 
men  are  constantly  received.  The  head 
assistants  of  the  other  hospitals  of  our 
District  have  all  passed  through  this 
Nursing  School. 

A few  months  after  Dr.  Hodge  died, 
Dr.  Tatchell  opened  a dispensary  at 
Tayeh  (1907).  Dr.  Pell  took  charge 
in  January  1908,  and  will  shortly  be 
in  a position  to  build  a hospital  on 
ground  already  acquired ; the  out- 
patient department  was  built  in  1909 
and  opened  in  the  September  of  that 
year.  In  1908  Dr.  Cundall  commenced 
medical  work  in  Anlu ; he  was  joined 
by  the  Rev.  William  and  Dr.  Ethel 
Rowley  early  in  the  following  year,  and 
Dr.  Rowley  at  once  took  charge  of  the 
work  for  women  and  children.  With 
great  difficulty  two  Chinese  houses  were 
rented  ; one  is  used  as  the  men's  hos- 


Famine  in 
Kiangpeh. 


Thomas 

Protheroe, 


19^  The  Call  of  Cathay 

pital  and  dispensary,  and  the  other  as 
a woman’s.  Each  of  these  newly 
opened  hospitals  had  admitted  over  100 
in-patients  by  the  close  of  the  year. 

In  that  same  year  the  great  famine 
broke  out  in  the  Kiangpeh  region,  and, 
loyal  to  the  tradition  handed  down 
from  David  Hill,  Methodism  lent  two 
of  her  sons  to  the  work.  Norman  Page 
worked  hard  at  the  distributing  centre, 
and  Thomas  Protheroe  undertook  long 
itinerations  among  the  famine-stricken 
people,  arranging  for  the  alleviation  of 
their  needs.  He  wrote,  “ I am  glad  to 
say  that  famine-fever,  smallpox,  and 
leprosy  called  forth  in  me  no  fear.” 
Carefulness  and  the  assurance  that  “ it 
shall  not  come  nigh  thee,”  made  long 
days  of  toil  not  only  possible  but  happy. 
Those  ills  he  escaped,  but  over-strain 
and  long  exposure  in  the  sun  proved 
too  much  for  a constitution  already  worn 
with  over  twenty-seven  years  of  almost 
superhuman  toil  as  an  itinerant  evange- 
list, and  from  the  time  of  his  return 
his  health  gradually  failed.  On  August 
20,  1908,  he  passed  away  in  his  sleep. 
“ Mr.  Protheroe  was  one  of  the  best 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  193 

colloquial  Chinese  speakers  in  Central 
China  : he  Avas,  perhaps,  the  very  best 
open-air  preacher  in  the  ranks  of  our 
ministry.  He  could  not  only  gather  a 
great  crowd ; he  could  hold  them  spell- 
bound. For  rough,  hard,  self-sacri- 
ficing work  he  leaves  behind  him  a 
memory  that  can  never  be  effaced  in 
those  that  knew  him.” 

What  has  been  written  will  suffice  to 
show  that  China,  a land  of  recurrent 
unrest,  would  still  be  closed  to  the 
Gospel  of  Christ  if  the  official  and  liter- 
ary classes  had  maintained  their  oppo- 
sition, but  that  the  influence  of  that 
Gospel  has  so  touched  all  ranks  that  its 
eradication  is  now  an  impossibility. 

A word  in  conclusion  as  to  our  oppor- 
tunities. A foothold  has  been  gained 
during  these  years  of  struggle  in  eighteen 
counties  in  Hupeh  Province,  and  in 
most  of  these  counties  we  are  the  only 
mission  at  work.  Is  it  too  much  to 
ask  that  our  three  hospitals  for  men 
should  be  increased  to  at  least  seven, 
and  that  where  possible  medical  work 
among  women  should  be  added  ? Is 
it  too  much  to  ask  that  our  foreign 

7 


Our 

Opportunity. 


194  The  Call  of  Cathay 

staff  should  be  augmented  till  we  have 
one  evangelistic  worker  for  each  county  ? 
Is  it  too  much  to  ask  that  we  may  have 
an  efficient  intermediate  school  in 
each  group  of  circuits — say  five  instead 
of  the  three  we  have  ? In  a word,  is 
it  too  much  to  ask  of  a Church  that  has 
received  richly  from  her  Lord  that  she 
should  utilise  to  the  utmost  her  oppor- 
tunities and  meet  to  the  full  her  re- 
sponsibilities to  these  eighteen  counties 
in  the  heart  of  Asia’s  vastest  empire  ? 

The  hand  of  God  led  Josiah  Cox  to 
Hankow.  The  impulse  of  the  divine 
will  led  David  Hill  to  Wusueh.  The 
obvious  call  of  the  Master  drew  J.  W. 
Brewer  to  Teian.  And  so  on  every 
step  of  their  advancing  way  the  workers 
have  seen  the  light  of  God  shining  clear 
and  bright.  No  one  can  possibly 
imagine  that  they  were  led  astray.  God 
has  set  His  own  seal  on  their  work. 
Will  it  not,  then,  be  counted  a privilege 
by  the  Methodist  Church  to  rise  to  her 
present  opportunities  in  those  eighteen 
counties,  and  flood  them  with  Gospel 
light,  even  as  she  seems  so  fully  called 
of  God  to  do  ? 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hupeh  195 


ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  see  what  types  of  men 
and  women  are  required  for  work  in  China. 

1.  Classify  the  types  of  workers  mentioned  in  this 
chapter. 

2.  What  do  you  consider  necessary  qualifications 
for  candidates  for  China  ? 


REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

Broomhall,  M. — The  Chinese  Empire  (pages  114-26). 
CoRNABY,  W.  A. — Rambles  in  Central  China. 
Clayton,  G.  A. — Methodism  in  Central  China. 
Tatchell,  W.  a. — Wesleyan  Medical  Missions  in 
China. 

Barber,  W.  T.  A. — The  Wesleyan  Missionary  Atlas 
of  China  (1893). 

Walker,  F.  D. — The  W.M.M.S.  in  China. 
Thompson,  R.  W. — Griffith  John. 

Hellier,  J.  E. — How  David  Hill  Followed  Christ. 
Barber,  W.  T.  A. — David  Hill,  Missionary  and 
Saint. 

Barber,  W.  T.  A. — David  Hill,  an  Apostle  to  the 
Chinese. 

Hill,  J.  K. — Sydney  Rupert  Hodge. 

Allan,  C.  W. — Chu  and  Lo  : Two  Chinese  Pastors^ 
Taylor,  Mrs.  H. — One  of  China's  Scholars. 
W.M.M.S. — The  General  Report. 


The  Sealed 
Province. 


Topography. 


CHAPTER  VI 

WESLEYAN  METHODIST  MISSIONS  IN 
HUNAN 

By  the  Rev.  Ernest  C.  Cooper 

Hunan  was  once  the  sealed  province 
of  a sealed  empire.  Of  the  eighteen 
provinces  of  China,  Hunan  was  the  last 
to  open  its  doors  to  the  Christian 
missionary.  The  Tibet  of  China  was 
Hunan,  and  the  Lhasa  of  China  was 
Hunan’s  capital,  the  city  of  Changsha. 
It  was  the  citadel  of  the  opposition  to 
Christianity,  and  the  great  storm-centre 
of  the  empire.  The  Hunanese  made  no 
vain  boast  when  they  called  Changsha 
“ The  City  of  the  Iron  Gates.” 

Hunan  is  a province  of  which  her 
people  are  justly  proud.  Situated  in 
the  centre  of  the  empire,  it  is  one  of 
the  fairest  of  her  provinces.  In  area 
it  is  nearly  twice  the  size  of  England, 

196 


CHINESE  RIVER  GUNBOAT. 


I 


I 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  197 

with  a population  of  some  22  millions ; 
it  contains  over  ninety  walled  cities,  and 
has  high  mountain  ranges,  long  navi- 
gable rivers,  fertile  and  populous  plains. 

There  is  a great  export  of  iron  and  Resources, 
coal,  and  rice  and  timber,  which  helps 
to  supply  the  needs  of  the  whole  of 
the  Yangtse  valley  ; and  in  the  future 
of  China’s  expansion  Hunan  must  of 
necessity  take  a foremost  place  as  a great 
manufacturing  centre. 

The  inhabitants  are  a race  of  stal-  Hunanese 
warts ; for  Hunan  was  once  depopu-  ^^^^’^ctenstics. 

lated  by  a great  rebellion,  and  after- 
wards colonised  from  the  surrounding 
provinces.  The  people  are  sturdy,  in- 
dependent, freedom-loving,  having  all 
the  characteristics  of  colonists.  At  one  Military  Valour, 
time  the  Chinese  army  was  in  the  main 
recruited  from  Hunan.  The  Chinese 
contingent  of  Chinese  Gordon’s  “ Ever- 
victorious  Army  ” was  an  army  of 
Hunan  braves,  and  it  was  they  who 
so  largely  assisted  him  to  break  the 
power  of  the  Taiping  rebel  hordes.  It 
is  one  of  the  boasts  of  Hunan  that 
after  the  rebellion  they  carried  back 
home  bucketfuls  of  “ red  buttons 


Scholastic 

Attainments, 


Capacity  for 
Governing. 


198  The  Call  of  Cathay 

the  second  highest  decoration  bestowed 
by  the  Emperor.  In  a great  measure 
the  present  high  prestige  of  the  Hunan- 
ese  was  gained  by  their  feats  of  military 
power  achieved  during  the  time  of  the 
Taipings. 

The  people  of  Hunan  are  amongst  the 
most  intellectual  in  the  empire,  and 
under  the  old  system  of  competitive  ex- 
amination, held  every  three  years,  more 
students  from  this  province  took  high 
degree  and  high  office  than  from  any 
other  part  of  China.  Many  of  the 
highest  statesmen  of  the  empire  have 
risen  from  amongst  Hunan’s  sons.  At 
one  time  no  less  than  six  out  of  the 
seven  ruling  Viceroys  came  from  this 
province.  The  first  Chinese  Ambassador 
to  England,  the  Marquis  Tseng  Kwo- 
fan,  was  a Hunanese  scholar  and  soldier ; 
and  His  Excellency  Choh  Chung-tang, 
the  famous  military  commander  who 
finally  suppressed  the  dangerous  Muham- 
madan rebellion  of  Kansu  in  the  north- 
west, was  a fellow  provincial.  It  is 
not  for  naught  the  Hunanese  are  called 
“ Men  of  Iron.”  They  are  born  rulers 
of  men. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  199 

They  are,  moreover,  on  the  whole,  a Religious 

1 • • 1 TT  • 1 1 i? 

religious  people.  Hunan  is  a land  or 
beautiful  temples  and  graceful  pagodas. 
Hengshan,  one  of  the  five  famous 
mountains  of  China,  is  situated  in  the 
heart  of  the  province.  Here  tens  of 
thousands  of  travel-stained  pilgrims 
worship  every  year.  As  soon  as  the 
chief  rice-crop  is  harvested,  the  devout 
Hunanese  prepares  for  his  annual  pilgrim- 
age to  distant  Nanyoh,  the  most  sacred 
peak  of  the  Hengshan  group.  The 
pilgrims  may  be  seen  in  attenuated  lines 
of  fifties  and  hundreds,  clad  in  scarlet, 
symbolical  of  their  sin,  travelling  in 
single  file  along  the  narrow,  sinuous 
Chinese  roads.  At  every  seventh  or 
tenth  pace  many  of  them  kneel  upon 
the  ground  and  prostrate  themselves 
before  the  little  shrines  they  carry  in 
their  hands.  Arriving  at  the  base  of 
the  mountain,  many  climb  hand  over 
hand,  and  knee  over  knee,  painfully 
ascending  to  the  summit  seeking  merit 
and  eternal  life.  Thus  is  their  weary 
pilgrimage  of  hundreds  of  miles  patiently 
accomplished. 

Some  of  the  northern  counties  are 


200 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

Hunan  Ascetics,  dotted  over  with  shrines  of  mummified 
reeluses,  who  allowed  themselves  to  be 
“ purified  ” by  gradual  starvation,  and 
finally  smoked  to  death  before  a ehar- 
eoal  fire — the  fumes  preserving  the 
body  against  decay — thus  gaining  to 
themselves  the  happy  position  of  genii 
of  the  mountains  and  the  worship  of 
their  revering  countrymen. 

Opponents  of  Such  are  the  people  who  for  many 

Christianity.  years  held  missionaries  at  bay.  Their 

very  spirit  of  religiousness  made  them 
the  opponents  of  Christianity  as  well 
as  of  the  foreigner;  They  imagined  they 
had  a religion  to  fight  for,  and  would 
not  tolerate  the  advances  of  the  new 
faith  which  they  heard  to  be  every- 
where flooding  the  land. 

Antichristian  This  Opposition  was  strongest  in  the 

Tract  Society,  city,  Changsha.  The  gentry — 

a most  powerful  class,  composed  princi- 
pally of  the  families  of  retired  officials, 
— formed  themselves  into  an  anti- 
Christian  tract  society.  Their  publi- 
cations were  of  a virulent  and  most 
scandalous  kind.  In  them  Christian 
missionaries  were  accused  of  heinous 
and  unnatural  crimes.  Christ  was 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  201 

represented  as  a erueified  pig,  and 
the  vilest  orgies  were  eharged  against 
His  followers.  The  people  were  urged 
to  expel  the  Christian  teachers  and 
their  doctrines,  and  pillage  and  murder 
were  openly  advocated  to  effect  this 
end.  Of  this  class  of  literature  some 
800,000  copies  were  issued,  and  dis- 
tributed by  paid  agents,  not  only  in 
Hunan,  but  throughout  the  entire  length 
of  the  Yangtse  Valley.  The  antici- 
pated result  followed,  and  from  Shang- 
hai on  the  east  coast,  riot  and  pillage 
spread  with  the  rapidity  of  a conflagra- 
tion to  beyond  Chungking  in  the  far 
west,  a distance  of  2,000  miles. 

Wusueh — a quiet  riverside  town — Hunan's  First 
was  in  the  track  of  these  Hunanese 
emissaries,  and  in  the  riot  which  resulted 
there,  William  Argent,  of  the  J oyful  News 
Mission,  lost  his  life^  and  Wesleyan 
Methodism  gained  her  first  martyr 
missionary  in  China  ; in  reality  the  first 
martyr  missionary  of  Hunan. 

The  first  attempt  of  any  Church  to  josiah  Cox 
enter  this  sealed  province  was  early  gnte?  Hunan 
in  the  sixties  of  last  century,  when 

1 See  previous  chapter. 


7* 


202 


Later  Attempts. 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

Josiah  Cox,  the  pioneer  of  Methodism 
in  Central  China,  entered  the  eity  of 
Yochow,  the  door  of  Hunan.  He  crossed 
the  frontier,  and  peeped  .through  the 
half-closed  door.  He  urged  upon  the 
home  Churches  the  necessity  for  an 
immediate  advance ; and  had  Metho- 
dism risen  to  the  greatness  of  the  occa- 
sion, and  supported  Mr.  Cox  in  his 
enterprise,  how  different  might  now 
have  been  the  position  of  Christianity  in 
the  province  ! 

Between  1875  and  1880  the  workers 
of  the  China  Inland  Mission  made  several 
attempts  to  occupy  the  sealed  province, 
and  even  succeeded  in  renting  a house 
for  a little  while  in  Yochow.  Several 
journeys  were  made  across  the  pro- 
vince, and  some  important  cities  were 
visited. 

In  later  years  Griffith  John,  of  the 
London  Missionary  Society,  and  John 
Archibald,  of  the  Scottish  Bible  Society, 
adventured  themselves  into  the  pro- 
vince on  a colportage  journey.  Then 
David  Hill  turned  a wistful  eye,  and 
prayed  to  enter  in. 

Later,  that  intrepid  pioneer,  Adam 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  203 

Dorwood,  of  the  China  Inland  Mission, 
spent  eight  most  strenuous  years  (1880- 
88)  of  colportage  in  the  province ; and 
gradually,  as  the  years  rolled  on,  Chris- 
tendom tied  a cordon  of  love  around 
the  Jesus-despising  and  Jesus-hating 
Hunanese.  Yochow,  at  the  north-  Frontier  Out- 
eastern  entrance  to  the  province,  was 
occupied  by  the  London  Missionary 
Society.  Shishen  and  Chalingchow 
on  the  north  and  east  respectively 
were  occupied  by  the  China  Inland 
Mission.  The  American  Presbyterians 
crossed  the  southern  frontier,  and 
established  Churches  at  Wuling  and 
Chiaho.  The  Church  Missionary 
Society  took  up  work  at  Kweilin 
on  the  frontier  to  the  west.  The 
Wesleyan  Methodist  Church  occupied 
Tsungyang  and  Tungeheng  on  the 
eastern  Hupeh  boundary ; while  Mr. 

B.  H.  Alexander,  of  the  American 
Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance,  an- 
chored his  boat  at  the  very  gates  of  the 
capital.  Thus  the  Churches  of  Europe  The  Challenge 
and  America  took  up  the  challenge  Churches, 
presented  by  the  unbroken  front  of 
opposition,  which  Hunan  presented  to 


How  God 
Guided. 


204  The  Call  of  Cathay 

the  Christian  advance.  The  eyes  of 
Christendom  were  focused  upon  Hunan, 
and  the  flood-gates  of  insistent,  im- 
portunate prayer  were  opened  upon  it ; 
and  although  for  years  little  apparent 
headway  was  made  against  the  tide 
of  anti-foreign  and  anti-missionary 
hatred,  yet  the  unobtrusive  work  of  the 
Chinese  Christian  colporteur  was  quietly 
augmented  and  pressed  unceasingly 
forward. 

Much  effort  therefore,  in  and  for 
Hunan,  had  already  been  made  by  Euro- 
pean and  Chinese  missionaries  of  the 
various  Societies  before  Wesleyan 
Methodism  seriously  set  herself  to  share 
in  the  task  of  evangelising  the  hostile 
province. 

At  the  time  of  the  Taiping  Rebellion 
there  lived  in  a small  town  near  Teian 
one  named  Chang  (an  exceedingly 
common  surname  in  China),  a man 
honest  and  of  good  report.  He  had  a 
son,  Yi-tsz,  who  at  that  time  was  six- 
teen years  of  age.  The  father  was 
slain  by  a band  of  the  rebels  from 
whom  he  tried  to  rescue  a young  girl, 
and  Yi-tsz  was  left  to  care  for  the 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  205 

home.  When  Mr.  Scarborough  was 
itinerating  he  came  to  this  town  and 
preached  in  the  streets,  and  as  Yi-tsz 
treated  him  very  courteously,  Mr.  Scar- 
borough gave  him  a copy  of  one  of  the 
Gospels.  A relative  of  his  returned 
about  this  time  from  Wuchang,  bringing 
some  tracts,  and  Chang  Yi-tsz  himself 
rescued  from  a rubbish-heap  a Christian 
book.  All  these  books  coming  into  his 
hands  almost  at  one  time  made  him  feel 
that  this  strange  doctrine  should  be  in- 
vestigated. When  on  a visit  to  Hankow 
he  called  on  David  Hill,  and  later  he 
joined  the  Church  at  Teian,  and  was 
baptised  in  1886*  His  house  soon  be- 
came a meeting-place  for  Christians, 
and  members  of  his  own  family  received 
baptism.  Mr.  Chang’s  influence  for 
good  increased,  and  he  became  a faith- 
ful, honorary  pastor. 

In  1893  a young  Chinese  Christian  The  Result  of 
named  Li  Kwang  Ti  told  Mr.  Warren  * 
that  a few  nights  previously  he  had 
seen  Christ  in  a vision,  and  had  been 
told  to  go  to  Hunan  and  sell  Christian 
books.  Mr.  Warren  was  rather  scep- 
tical, and  advised  him  to  consult  Mr. 


A Chinese 
Missionary 
Society. 


The  Entry 
Planned. 


206  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Chang  Yi-tsz.  He  did  so,  and  Mr. 
Chang  reported  that  he  was  eonvinced 
that  the  suggestion  was  of  God,  and 
volunteered  to  go  also.  So  the  subject 
was  laid  before  a preachers’  meeting  of 
the  Teian  Circuit,  and  they  so  enthused 
the  local  Christians  that  they  supported 
the  enterprise,  and  appointed  the  young 
visionary  and  Mr.  Chang  Yi-tsz  to  this 
work,  the  circuit  undertaking  to  bear 
the  cost  of  the  expedition.  On  Easter 
Sunday,  1893,  the  members  of  the 
Teian  churches  assembled  in  the  city 
chapel  to  partake  of  the  sacrament 
of  the  Lord’s  Supper,  and  solemnly  to 
set  apart  these  two  men  for  the  work 
of  evangelism  in  Hunan.  As  the  out- 
come of  their  first  journey,  the  Metho- 
dist Church  in  Hupeh  inaugurated  its 
own  Chinese  Missionary  Society,  and 
eventually  undertook  the  support  of 
our  first  four  Chinese  workers  in  Hunan. 

The  Wuchang  Synod  of  1900  unani- 
mously resolved  to  commence  aggres- 
sive work,  and  the  chairman — T.  E. 
North — W.  H.  Watson,  and  G.  G.  Warren 
were  deputed  to  make  a tour  of  in- 
spection in  the  northern  section  of 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  207 

Hunan  with  a view  to  occupancy.  The 
Boxer  uprising  in  July  of  that  year 
prevented  an  immediate  entry,  but  in 
January  1902  Lo  Yu-shan  and  the 
present  writer  were  set  apart  for  this 
pioneer  work. 

In  the  tew  short  years  that  have  The  Land 
intervened  we  have  possessed  the 
northern  and  southern  sections  of  the 
Siang  Valley,  and  formed  no  less  than 
seven  Methodist  circuits.  In  1906  Hu- 
nan was  constituted  a separate  District, 
with  the  Rev.  Gilbert  G.  Warren  as  its 
first  Chairman. 

Our  Circuits 

Changsha  (“Sandy  Stretch,”  from  Changsha 
the  low  sandy  island  which  stretches 
before  the  city  in  the  middle  of  the  busy 
Siang  River)  is  considered  one  of  the 
finest  and  cleanest  cities  in  the  empire. 

On  the  opposite  bank  rises  the  famous 
Yoluh  Hill,  on  whose  sides  may  be  seen 
the  rude  stone  structure  sheltering  one 
of  the  oldest  inscriptions  in  the  empire, 
the  Tablet  of  Yii  the  Great,  the  Chinese 
Noah,  the  saviour  of  the  people  from 
an  awful  inundation  of  an  early  time. 


2o8  The  Call  of  Cathay 

At  the  foot  of  this  hill  is  one  of  the 
oldest  and  most  famous  of  Confueian 
eolleges,  antedating  the  great  univer- 
sities of  England.  A eity  that  eon- 
trols  the  destinies  of  22  millions,  that 
triennially  determined  the  future  of  * 
10,000  graduates,  famous  alike  for  its 
statesmen,  soldiers,  and  scholars — is 
it  any  wonder  that  it  proudly  sought 
to  stem  the  advancing  wave  of  the 
foreign  innovation  ? 

It  was  into  this  city  that  Wesleyan 
Methodism  sent  its  first  pioneers — Lo 
Yu-shan  and  the  writer  of  this  chapter. 

A spacious  Chinese  house  was  rented  and 
adapted,  and  great  was  the  excitement 
when  the  large  front  hall  was  opened 
for  preaching  to  the  citizens.  Crowds 
gathered  daily,  and,  on  the  whole,  were 
attentive  and  respectful.  From  the 
first  we  have  had  large  audiences,  which 
have  never  flagged  in  numbers  nor  in 
interest.  An  encouraging  group  of  in- 
quirers was  quickly  gathered,  and  as 
quickly  dispersed  when  it  was  under- 
stood that  no  special  privileges  in  the 
law-courts  were  obtainable.  Of  that 
first  batch  only  one  remains  with  us 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  209 

to-day,  and  he  a man  from  Hupeh  ! 
On  Easter  Sunday,  1903 — just  ten  years 
after  that  memorable  dedicatory  ser- 
vice in  the  Teian  chapel,  when  those 
first  Hupeh  colporteurs  left  for  Hunan — 
a baptismal  service  was  held  in  Chang- 
sha, when  three  converts,  the  firstfruits 
of  our  Hunan  Church,  were  received 
into  Christian  fellowship.  It  was  most 
appropriate  that  the  Chinese  minister,  Lo 
Yu-shan — ^himself  a Hunanese — should 
administer  the  rite  of  baptism. 

In  this  city  we  now  possess  a valuable 
site  on  a busy  main  thoroughfare. 
Abutting  on  to  this  street  is  a fine  new 
preaching-hall — the  largest  in  the  city 
— where  daily  preaching  (afternoon  and 
evening)  is  carried  on  more  vigorously 
than  ever.  Behind  this  hall  there  are 
the  native  adapted  premises  of  our  Theo- 
logical Training  Institution,  which  was 
opened  last  year  (1909)  and  now  has 
sixteen  students  in  residence,  including 
several  men  from  other  missions.  We 
look  forward  to  this  institution  becoming 
a valuable  auxiliary  to  our  work  in  the 
near  future.  On  the  same  site  we  have 
erected  two  European  houses  for  the 


A Memorable 
Anniversary. 


Changsha 
Chapel,  School, 
and  Houses. 


2 10  The  Call  of  Cathay 

residence  of  the  circuit  ministers.  From 
the  commencement,  the  work  in  this 
great  city  has  been  very  unresponsive ; 
but  although  we  do  not  seem  to  make 
much  headway  against  the  prejudice 
and  bigotry  of  the  people,  yet  even  here 
Christ  is  gathering  to  Himself  a Church. 

Changsha  has  one  out-station,  the 
county  town  of  Siang-ying,  some  forty 
miles  lower  dowm  the  river  towards 
Hankow.  Here  we  have  a small  Chris- 
tian community. 

Changsha  The  Changsha  riots  broke  out  in 
April  1910.  For  several  months  there 
had  been  much  unrest  in  the  province, 
and  particularly  in  the  capital.  Scarcity 
of  rice,  and  consequent  high  prices, 
agitation  against  foreign  financing  of 
the  railroad,  the  contemplated  building 
of  the  British  Consulate  by  skilled  work- 
men from  other  provinces,  the  revived 
antagonism  to  everything  foreign,  and 
the  superstitious  fears  aroused  by  the 
appearance  of  Halley’s  comet — these  all 
went  to  swell  the  popular  discontent, 
but  it  was  almost  as  a bolt  from  the  blue 
that  the  riots  burst  upon  the  city. 

There  had  been  trouble  over  the 


KWEICHOW 


MAP  OF  THE  HTJISrAN  PROVINCE  TO  SHOW  W.M.M.S.  STATIONS. 


211 


2 12 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

exportation  of  rice,  but  this  grievance 
had  been  removed,  and  it  was  hoped 
the  excitement  had  died  down.  The 
Governor  had  promised  to  lower  the 
price  of  rice  by  opening  the  Government 
granaries.  To  the  amazement  and  anger 
of  the  populace,  this  promise  was  not 
kept.  On  April  13  a large  mob  gathered 
before  the  Governor’s  yamen^  assuming 
a threatening  attitude,  and  some  of  the 
bodyguard  fired  upon  and  killed  a num- 
ber of  the  citizens.  Then  were  let  loose 
the  worst  passions  of  the  mob.  The 
following  extract  from  a letter  written 
by  Mrs.  Cooper  will  give  an  insight  into 
this  phase  of  missionary  life  : 

“s.s.  Sian  Tan.  Off  Changsha,  Hunan. 

1910. 

“ Last  night  we  retired  to  rest  at  eleven  o’clock 
and  at  one  o’clock  were  awakened  by  shouting  in 
the  street.  We  rose  and  hurriedly  dressed  and  went 
up  on  to  the  flat  roof,  and  from  there  could  hear  the 
breaking  of  doors  and  general  destruction,  amid  the 
yells  of  the  mob,  of  the  flne  new  Government  post- 
office  near  by.  From  there  the  crowds  rushed  to  the 
Chinese  Imperial  Bank,  a few  doors  from  the  post- 
office.  Then  they  came  on  to  our  Mission — the 
chapel  stands  on  the  front  of  the  plot  facing  the 
street.  They  surged  in,  and  as  we  stood  in  a silent 
group  on  the  house-top  we  heard  the  banging  and 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  213 

stamping  of  thousands  of  feet,  and  the  sharp  sound 
of  smashing  glass  ; then  we  all  came  downstairs 
and  waited  in  the  passage  in  the  dark — for  we  thought 
it  better  to  have  no  lights  in  the  house.  We  hoped 
against  hope  that  the  demolition  of  the  chapel  would 
content  them,  and  that  they  would  surge  out  again  ; 
but  alas  ! they  surged  the  other  way  to  the  back  of 
the  chapel,  and  smashed  up  the  Theological  School  ; 
and  after  that  rushed  through  the  big  doors  that 
separate  our  little  front  garden  from  the  school. 
When  my  husband  found  them  in  our  garden  (he 
had  been  watching  events  at  the  front  and  retreating 
step  by  step  as  the  rioters  made  attack  after  attack), 
he  came  hastily  to  the  back,  lantern  in  hand,  and 
told  us  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Warren  and  family  (whose 
house  is  next  to  ours)  that  we  must  escape  at  once 
by  the  back  gate.  This  back  gate  is  always  kept 
locked,  and  is  an  emergency  exit  into  a narrow  lane. 
Leaving  the  house,  we  all  filed  out  as  the  rioters, 
led  by  a man  beating  a gong  and  another  carrying  a 
lantern,  dashed  up  on  to  the  front  verandah  and  into 
our  house.  We  got  to  the  great  West  Gate  of  the 
city  . . . and  passed  through  . . . and  breathed  a sigh 
of  relief  and  gratitude  to  God  as  we  heard  the  order 
given  ‘ Shut  the  gates,’  and  knew  in  the  darkness 
that  we  were  out  on  the  river  bank.  We  made  our 
way  to  this  steamer,  and  came  aboard. 

“ This  morning  we  hear  that  the  house  was  not 
fired,  but  that  our  goods  were  all  bundled  out  and 
pitched  on  to  the  grassplot,  and  there  lamp-oil  was 
pomed  over  the  heaps  and  they  were  set  on  fire. 
At  dawn  Mr.  Warren  made  an  excursion  to  the  house, 
and  says  that  all  the  doors  are  wrenched  off,  the 
verandah  windows  and  glass  windows  smashed,  and 
a state  of  general  havoc  prevails.  The  bonfire  on 
the  grass  still  smouldered. 


2 14  The  Call  of  Cathay 

“We  have  just  had  breakfast  on  the  steamer — a 
very  white-faced,  jaded-looking  lot,  the  men  without 
collars,  the  children  without  boots  and  stockings. 
When  we  were  tidying  up  for  breakfast  no  one  had 
a comb  or  brush  or  hairpin.” 

“ Friday  morning,  April  15. 

“ Yesterday  was  a time  of  great  excitement.  At 
short  intervals  the  Chinese  fired  different  buildings, 
the  flames  leapt  high,  and  the  dense  clouds  of  smoke 
proclaimed  clearly  to  us  what  was  going  on  in  the 
city.  First,  the  Norwegian  Chapel  rose  in  flames 
and  smoke,  and  later  the  Norwegian  Mission  House. 
An  hour  or  two  of  quiet,  and  then  the  China  Inland 
Mission  House.  Again  a lull,  and  then  the  London 
Mission  premises.  During  the  afternoon  we  heard 
the  Governor  had  been  murdered,  but  that  the 
populace  would  not  believe  it  till  they  saw  his  dead 
body  ; rumours  said  they  insisted  on  his  head  being 
shown  them.  . . .” 

We  afterwards  found  that  the  last 
statements  were  false  reports.  The 
Governor’s  residence  was  fired  and 
gutted,  but  the  Governor  himself  just 
escaped  with  his  life.  Government 
buildings,  schools,  and  business  premises 
were  attacked,  and  mission  after  mission 
suffered  in  the  general  riot,  our  own 
amongst  the  number.  For  three  days 
anarchy  prevailed,  and  the  city  was 
given  up  to  riot  and  pillage ; but  under 
the  merciful  providence  of  God,  not  one 


OUR  CHANGSHA  MISSION  HOUSES  AETER  THE  RIOTS. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  215 

of  the  hundred  Europeans  in  the  city 
received  any  injury. 

During  these  fateful  days  little  bands 
of  refugees  found  their  way  to  the 
hospitable  British  steamer  anchored 
in  the  river,  and  were  conveyed  to 
Hankow  and  elsewhere,  to  await  the 
restoration  of  order  and  government. 

Our  Country  Circuits 

Pingkiang  Placid  River  ” city)  Pmgkung 
was  opened  as  an  out-station  during 
the  same  year  that  Changsha  was 
occupied.  It  lies  among  the  hills,  some 
three  days’  journey  by  road,  north-east 
of  Changsha,  the  actual  distance  being 
about  eighty  miles. 

The  inhabitants  were  greatly  opposed 
to  our  desire  to  settle  in  their  midst. 

The  unfortunate  man  who  helped  us 
to  rent  a so-called  devil-haunted  shop 
on  a main  street  was  afterwards  badly 
beaten,  and  was  compelled  to  fire  strings 
of  crackers  from  one  end  of  the  town 
to  the  other,  calling  out  an  apology  to 
the  citizens.  Our  premises  were  taken 
from  us,  and  for  a time  it  seemed  as 


21 6 The  Call  of  Cathay 

though  we  should  have  to  beat  a retreat ; 
but  finally  taetful  interviewing  of  the 
gentry  of  the  town,  and  the  sowing 
broadeast  of  some  hundreds  of  traets 
explaining  our  aims  and  methods,  won 
the  day,  and  our  house  was  restored  to 
us.  Sinee  then  the  attitude  of  the  people 
has  ehanged.  Three  years  ago  the  towns- 
people presented  the  two  resident  mis- 
sionaries with  a eongratulatory  tablet, 
expressing  goodwill  and  appreeiation  of 
their  efforts  for  the  welfare  of  the  town. 

The  work  has  developed  rapidly,  and 
there  are  already  two  self-supporting 
ehurehes  whieh  employ  their  own 
preaeher  and  school  teacher.  Some  £30 
per  annum  is  subscribed  by  the  ‘‘  One- 
cash  Society,”  each  member  being 
pledged  to  give  one  cash  a day — a cash 
equalling  about  -g-Q-th  of  an  English  penny. 
A Boys’  Boarding-school  has  been 
opened  with  34  scholars,  and  is  almost 
self-supporting.  An  adult  half-day 
school  for  Bible  instruction  is  a great 
success.  Fourteen  business  men  of  the 
town,  who  attend  this  school,  take  the 
Annual  Synod  examinations  in  Christian 
doctrine.  There  is  a Day  School  for 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  217 

Girls,  and  a Women’s  Bible  Sehool  is 
meditated.  Pingkiang  has  six  out- 
stations,  eaeh  with  its  own  day  school. 

Liuyang  (‘‘Virulence  of  the  Liu”)Liuyang 
takes  its  name  from  the  beautiful  Liu 
River,  which  flows  past  the  city.  It  is 
a prosperous  place,  situated  amidst 
fine  hill-scenery,  some  sixty  miles  or 
two  days’  journey  by  road  from  Chang- 
sha and  Pingkiang.  It  is  famous  for 
its  past  officials,  and  has  a great  export 
of  the  well-known  China  grass-cloth, 
which  finds  a ready  sale  in  England. 

Liuyang  had  been  visited  for  some 
time  by  a Hunanese  Christian  colporteur 
named  Huang.  He  had  sold  books 
and  preached  on  the  main  streets  of  the 
town,  and  there  was  promise  of  several 
converts  if  only  we  could  occupy  the  place 
and  instruct  the  inquirers.  We  there- 
fore opened  this  city  at  the  same  time 
that  we  occupied  Pingkiang.  After 
much  difficulty  our  Chinese  minister 
persuaded  a housholder  to  rent  us  his 
shop.  This  was  put  into  repair,  and 
preaching  to  the  heathen  was  imme- 
diately commenced.  Colporteur  Huang 
speedily  gathered  around  him  a little 


Yiyang  Circuit, 


21 8 The  Call  of  Cathay 

band  of  inquirers,  who  now  constitute 
the  nucleus  of  the  Christian  Church  in 
that  city. 

Unlike  Pingkiang,  no  disturbance 
followed  our  occupancy,  yet  here,  too, 
we  have  had  difficulty  and  persecution. 
On  one  occasion  Mr.  Huang  was  roughly 
handled  by  an  angry  mob,  and  was  only 
saved  by  the  timely  interference  of 
friends.  He  won  to  himself  the  respect 
of  the  townspeople  by  the  Christ-like 
way  in  which  he  acted  under  these 
trying  circumstances,  and  he  eventually 
petitioned  the  county  magistrate  for 
the  release  of  the  ringleaders.  The  work 
is  spreading  in  the  eastern  part  of  the 
county,  and  there  is  promise  of  a very 
successful  church.  Until  1910  there 
has  been  no  resident  missionary,  but 
with  the  coming  of  W.  W.  Gibson  and 
J.  A.  Alexander  there  was  the  beginning 
of  much  progress  in  Liuyang  Circuit. 

Yiyang  (the  city  of  “ Progressive 
Strength  ”)  is  an  important  trading- 
mart  situated  on  the  Tsz  River,  which 
empties  its  waters  into  the  great  Tung- 
ting  Lake.  It  is  a place  of  great 
strategic  importance,  as  thousands  of 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  219 

boatmen  pass  through  Yiyang  each 
season  on  their  way  to  Hankow  with 
their  freight  of  coal  and  iron  from  the 
mines  of  the  Paoking  district. 

In  the  autumn  of  1902  a visit  was 
paid  to  the  city  by  W.  H.  Watson  and 
the  writer.  The  whole  city  turned  out 
to  watch,  for  this  was  the  first  occa- 
sion upon  which  foreigners  had  had 
the  temerity  to  land  there.  The  shop- 
keepers closed  down  their  places,  for 
the  people  are  excitable,  and  not  easily 
controlled ; the  officials  were  nervous, 
and  posted  soldiers  every  few  paces  down 
the  crowded  streets,  and  they  themselves 
accompanied  the  two  missionaries  on 
horseback  during  the  long  hours  of 
that  tropical  day,  as  from  end  to  end  of 
the  city  they  perseveringly  sold  many 
thousands  of  picture  tracts  to  the 
thronging  Chinese  multitude.  As  a 
result  of  this  journey  it  was  determined 
to  occupy  at  once ; and  after  the  usual 
opposition  and  delays,  a small  wooden 
house  in  the  corner  of  a dirty  alley-way 
was  rented. 

A Christian  soldier  was  put  in  charge, 
a native  of  the  place  who  had  been 


220 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

converted  to  God  while  guarding  a 
China  Inland  Mission  chapel  in  Hupeh. 
He  has  proved  an  invaluable  worker, 
and  a wise  pastor.  Under  God  he  has 
been  enabled  to  start  a wonderful  work 
of  grace.  Thieves,  gamblers,  drunkards, 
opium-smokers  have  been  converted 
under  his  ministry.  When  in  Hunan,  the 
Rev.  Gregory  Mantle  visited  this  church, 
and  heard  the  experience  of  its  members 
at  the  Methodist  class-meeting.  He 
has  left  it  on  record  that  it  was  the 
most  wonderful  experience-meeting  he 
ever  attended.  The  work  still  prospers. 
We  have  established  a day  school  for 
boys,  and  a boarding-school  for  girls, 
and  also  are  beginning  a Bible  school 
for  women.  The  members  have  them- 
selves opened  another  preaching-place 
in  the  town,  and  in  the  country  they 
have  started  several  village  eauses.  The 
ex-soldier  preacher  has  now  been  ac- 
cepted as  a candidate  on  trial  for  the 
Chinese  ministry. 

Paokingfu  (the  city  of  “ Precious  Fe- 
licity ”)  is  situated  on  the  right  bank 
of  the  dangerous  Tsz  River,  in  the  very 
heart  of  the  “ Black  Country  ” of 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  221 

Hunan.  Twenty  days  are  required  to 
reaeh  the  city  by  boat  from  Changsha, 
and  by  road  it  takes  six  days’  hard  walk- 
ing to  accomplish  the  journey.  Coal 
and  iron  mines  abound  in  the  district, 
and  during  the  night  the  glare  from  the 
smelting  furnaces  can  be  seen  for  many 
miles  around.  The  people  are  turbu- 
lent, but  have  many  sterling  qualities. 

The  city  was  first  visited  in  the  late 
autumn  of  1902,  and  was  just  recovering 
from  the  unrest  occasioned  by  an 
incipient  rebellion.  The  county  official 
strenuously  opposed  us  in  our  endeavour 
to  rent  a preaching-place  ; but  when 
he  saw  the  good  received  by  some  of  his 
sick  soldiers  from  the  missionary’s 
drugs,  he  so  far  relented  as  to  permit 
us  to  rent  a disreputable  house  in  a 
quiet  corner  of  -the  city. 

In  1903  W.  W.  Gibson  took  up  his 
residence  and  commenced  preaching 
and  dispensary  work.  His  Opium  Refuge 
was  the  means  of  many  a poor  opium- 
smoker  gaining  liberty  from  the  drug, 
and  some  of  them,  at  least,  have  been 
led  to  Christ.  His  efforts  have  been 
much  appreciated,  and  have  been  the 


222 


Chenchow 

Circuit. 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

means  of  removing  much  misunder- 
standing and  distrust.  After  a time  a 
good  site  was  purchased,  and  two  semi- 
foreign  houses  have  been  built  for  the 
minister  and  doctor  now  in  charge  of 
the  station.  The  little  dispensary  has 
developed  into  a hospital  with  twenty- 
four  beds,  while  day  school  and  preach- 
ing-hall are  alike  doing  their  work  for 
the  city’s  good. 

Success  has  come  more  slowly  than 
in  the  northern  circuits,  and  the  church 
is  still  very  small.  Paoking  has  one 
out-station,  the  town  of  Yungfeng,  half- 
way on  the  road  between  Changsha  and 
Paoking,  where  a Chinese  preacher  is 
in  charge  of  a small  church. 

Chenchow  (the  city  of  Trees  ”) 
lies  in  a cup-like  hollow  surrounded^ 
by  beautiful  hills.  It  is  at  the  head  of 
the  Hunan-Kwangtung  watershed,  and 
was  once  a most  important  depot.  The 
great  overland  trade  route  from  Can- 
ton and  South-western  China  to  Hankow 
and  Peking  passed  through  the  city. 
Thousands  of  mules  carried  merchan- 
dise day  by  day  over  the  famous  Cheh- 
lin  Pass  to  Chenchow,  whence  it  was 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  223 

shipped  by  junk  to  Hankow  and  beyond. 

The  city  is  now  of  less  importance  than 
formerly,  as  the  big  steamers  of  the  sea 
route  now  divert  much  of  the  trade. 
Chenchow  can  be  reached  by  river 
from  Changsha  in  eighteen  days,  but 
by  road  the  journey  is  accomplished 
on  foot  in  nine  days. 

Work  was  commenced  here  in  the 
summer  of  1903  in  a small  rented  house 
at  the  quiet  end  of  a main  thoroughfare. 

For  several  years  there  was  a native  in 
charge  but  no  resident  missionary ; the 
work  being  superintended  from  Yung- 
chowfu,  distant  eight  days’  journey 
to  the  west.  Now  there  is  promise  of 
a strong  and  healthy  church.  School 
and  women’s  work  are  being  vigorously 
maintained,  and  colportage  and  daily 
preaching  occupy  much  of  the  mis- 
sionaries’ time.  At  Ichang,  on  the 
Kwangtung  frontier,  an  out- station  has 
been  occupied,  and  is  fortunate  in 
having  the  loving  oversight  of  an  old 
and  experienced  Chinese  preacher  and 
his  wife. 

Yungchowdu  (the  “ Region  of  Perpe-  Yungchow 
tuity  ”)  has  been  called  the  garden 


224  The  Call  of  Cathay 

city  of  Hunan.  It  lies  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Siao  River,  whieh  forms 
a graceful  horse-shoe  bend  round  the 
town.  It  is  well  wooded,  and  contains 
large  open  spaces  and  grassy  hillsides, 
while  in  the  distance  are  to  be  seen  the 
towering  mountains  of  Kwangtung  and 
Kwangsi.  The  inhabitants  are  friendly 
but  apathetic,  and  the  work  has  been 
very  up-hill.  It  is  a most  idolatrous 
city,  containing,  it  is  said,  some  sixty- 
nine  temples  and  monasteries. 

When  we  first  occupied  Yungchow, 
the  usual  obstructions  were  encountered, 
but  finally  a so-called  devil-haunted  house 
was  obtained  and  transformed  into 
preaching-hall,  dispensary,  day-school, 
and  missionary’s  house.  Dispensary 
work  broke  down  the  opposition — 
patients  were  sometimes  carried  four 
days’  journey  over  the  mountains  to 
obtain  relief — and  after  several  years  of 
lay  medical  work  a hospital  is  being 
built,  and  a fully  qualified  practitioner. 
Dr.  George  Hadden,  is  in  charge. 
The  day  schools  have  developed  into 
boarding-schools.  The  Girls’  School  and 
the  Women’s  Work  are  now  under  the 


piwto  ly-\  [TF.  H.  PiXlow. 

INTERIOR  OF  THE  WESLEYAN  CHURCH,  YUNGCHOWFU. 


p.  224] 


A CHINESE  STREET. 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  225 

care  of  Miss  Denham,  the  only  Women’s 
Auxiliary  worker  in  the  province.  The 
Boys’  School  is  full  of  promise,  and  in 
the  three  highest  grades  has  this  year 
gained  premier  places  in  the  examina- 
tions of  all  the  Methodist  schools  in 
Hupeh  and  Hunan.  ' Kiyang,  an  out- 
station  three  days’  journey  down  the 
river,  has  a preaching-hall  and  day 
school  for  boys. 

^ 

The  W.M.M.S.  was  the  fourth  British  Other  Missions 
Missionary  Society  to  enter  Changsha. 

The  London  Mission  had  entered  a 
year  earlier,  while  the  China  Inland 
Mission  and  an  American  Methodist 
Mission  preceded  us  by  a few  months. 

Later  there  followed  the  Norwegian 
Mission  and  the  American  Episcopal 
Mission.  One  of  the  Alliance  mission- 
aries of  America,  unable  to  get  a foot- 
hold in  the  city,  had  for  many  months 
been  living  on  a boat  anchored  at  the 
city  gate,  and  had  gone  ashore  each 
day  to  preach  in  the  streets. 

At  the  first  Conference  of  Hunan  First  Hunan 
missionaries,  held  at  the  Wesleyan  oJnferenJI 
Methodist  church,  Changsha,  in  1903, 

8 


226 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


Yale  University 
Mission 


Seccnd 

Conference* 


a hearty  and  unanimous  invitation 
was  given  to  the  Yale  University  of 
America  to  found  an  Educational  Mis- 
sion in  the  city,  which  would  take 
over  the  higher  educational  work  of 
the  various  Churches,  and  which  would 
ultimately  develop  into  a fully  equipped 
university.  The  invitation  was  accepted, 
and  several  university  volunteers  at  once 
came  out.  Although  still  in  its  infancy, 
we  look  forward  to  the  Yale  University 
Mission  becoming  the  great  helper  of 
all  the  Churches,  and  a potent  factor  in 
the  salvation  of  Hunan. 

There  is  the  greatest  unanimity 
amongst  the  missionary  community  of 
Changsha,  and  indeed  throughout  the 
whole  province.  In  Changsha,  and  in 
many  of  the  other  mission  centres,  the 
missionaries  and  the  converts  of  all 
the  Churches  gather  together  monthly 
for  united  prayer-meetings. 

The  second  Hunan  Missionary  Confer- 
ence was  held  in  1907,  and  it  was  found 
that  in  the  four  short  years  since  the  last 
Conference  the  number  of  workers  and 
their  converts  had  more  than  doubled. 

In  addition  to  the  Societies  already 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  227 

mentioned  as  having  ehurehes  in  Chang- 
sha, there  are  several  other  powerful 
Soeieties  at  work  in  different  parts  of 
the  provinee.  The  Lutheran  Reformed 
Chureh  of  Ameriea  is  building  up  a 
strong  edueational  work  at  Yoehow. 
The  Ameriean  Presbyterians  have  a 
healthy  and  developing  work  through- 
out the  valleys  of  the  Siang  and  the  Yiien 
Rivers.  The  Finnish  Missionary  Soeiety 
has  taken  up  the  responsibility  of 
evangelising  the  prefeetural  cities  and 
counties  to  the  north-west.  The  Ger- 
man China  Inland  Mission  has  work 
outside  the  city  of  Changsha  and  also 
up  the  Yiien  Valley  beyond  Paoking 
and  Wukang,  while  the  Church  Mis- 
sionary Society  has  just  consecrated 
its  first  Bishop  of  Hunan,  whose  see  is 
to  lie  along  the  Siang  Valley  from 
Changsha  to  Yungchow  and  on  to  the 
Kweilin  across  the  Kwangsi  frontier. 
The  missionaries  of  Hunan  now  number 
over  two  hundred,  and  their  converts 
several  thousands. 

There  are  fourteen  fully  equipped 
hospitals,  and  many  more  dispensaries. 
There  are  at  least  twenty  educational 


Other  Missions 
in  the  Province. 


Foreign 
Workers  and 
Converts. 


The  Army  of 
Occupation, 


Lo  Yu'shan. 


2£8  The  Call  of  Cathay 

institutions  throughout  the  province, 
in  addition  to  the  free  schools  at  every 
station.  Many  of  these  educational 
institutions  are  being  rapidly  developed 
and  efficiently  staffed.  They  include 
theological  schools,  Bible  schools  for 
women,  and  boarding-schools  for  boys 
and  girls,  besides  the  Yale  University 
Mission.  The  shadow  of  the  Cross  lies 
over  half  the  counties  of  Hunan. 
Hospitals,  schools,  and  churches  dot 
the  landscape — the  camp-fires  of  the 
army  of  Emmanuel. 

Hunan  is  a citadel  of  Chinese  re- 
sistance. Capture  it,  and  we  shall  have 
gained  a most  important  strategic  centre 
in  the  conquest  of  China. 


Some  Hunanese  Christians 

Lo  Yu-shan  was  the  son  of  a Hunanese 
literary  man  who  gained  an  official  post, 
but  died  before  his  son  was  grown  up. 
Yu-shan’s  mother  was  living,  as  a girl, 
in  Hankow^  in  the  early  fifties ; and 
during  the  fearful  seventeenth  night 
of  the  Seventh  Chinese  month  of  1855, 
when  four  miles  of  houses  were  burnt 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  229 

down  by  Taiping  incendiaries,  she  was 
hiding  alone  in  a cellar.  The  house 
was  burnt  over  her  head,  but  the  falling 
beams  overarched  her,  so  that  she 
was  found  alive  the  next  day.  She 
was  a woman  of  considerable  force  of 
character,  and  her  son  loved  her. 

As  a young  man,  Yu-shan  made  First 
Hankow  his  headquarters,  but  travelled 
far  and  wide,  in  the  track  of  the  Im- 
perial Examiner,  as  a seller  of  spectacles 
at  the  various  examination  centres. 

In  the  year  1884  he  was  thus  engaged 
at  Wenchow,  in  South  Chekiang  Pro- 
vince, over  800  miles  bv  water  from 
Hankow.  The  students  stirred  up  a 
riot,  and  destroyed  the  China  Inland 
Mission  premises — where  George  Stott 
had  commenced  work  in  1868,  and  where 
he  now  suffered  the  loss  of  all  things 
with  calm  cheerfulness.  Yu-shan, 
mingling  with  the  crowd,  saw  this  and 
marvelled.  Here  was  a foreigner  dis- 
playing the  virtue  of  a Sage  ! There 
must  be  something  in  this  religion  of 
his.  So,  on  Yu-shan’s  return  to  Han- 
kow, where  he  got  settled  employment, 
he  turned  in  at  the  Wesleyan  Mission 


On  Trial " 


The  Power  of 
Prayer. 


230  The  Call  of  Cathay 

preaching-hall,  began  to  attend  services 
where  David  Hill  was  chief  preacher, 
and  became  a friend  of  W.  A.  Cornaby. 
In  course  of  time  his  name  was  entered 
as  “on  trial.”  But  after  a while  he 
“ ceased  to  meet  ” for  fully  five  months. 
The  missionaries  thought  he  had  gone 
off  on  a tour  as  before,  but  eventually 
found  that  he  lived  quite  near,  but  did 
not  intend  to  come,  as  his  employer 
was  averse  to  it.  One  evening,  how- 
ever, he  felt  a strong  impulse  to  attend 
the  evening  prayers — that  was  his  ac- 
count of  it.  On  Mr.  Cornaby ’s  side 
were  the  following  facts.  The  day 
after  he  heard  that  Yu-shan  was  not 
distant  there  was  one  of  the  monthly 
united  prayer-meetings  held  in  the 
British  Concession,  Hankow.  It  was 
led  by  a stranger,  and  was  a time  of 
wonderful  unity  of  feeling.  In  the 
midst  of  the  meeting  the  leader  called 
for  a pause  for  silent  prayer,  saying, 
“ It  may  be  that  some  of  you  have  a 
dear  Chinese  friend  you  would  like  to 
pray  for.”  That  seemed  a direct  mes- 
sage from  God  to  pray — to  agonise  in 
prayer — for  Lo  Yu-shan.  It  was  easy 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  231 

to  pray  in  that  meeting  attended  by 
“ power  from  on  high.”  And  there  was 
a feeling  that  prayer  was  availing.  As 
Mr.  Cornaby  returned  to  the  mission 
eompound  and  opened  the  door  of  the 
prayer-room  that  evening,  there  sat  Lo 
Yu-shan.  He  came  regularly  after  that. 

Ten  days  after  he  was  found  kneeling  in 
silent  prayer  as  the  door  opened.  And 
when  the  little  meeting  had  started, 
without  being  called  upon,  he  offered 
his  first  public  prayer — a few  sentences, 
the  last  of  which  was  sobbed  out : 

“ Lord  Jesus,  save  my  mother ! ” By 
the  time  he  was  baptised  his  mother 
was  “ on  trial,”  and  her  baptism  followed 
a few  months  after. 

Now  that  he  knew  in  his  own  heart, 
and  in  his  mother’s  case,  the  power  of 
prayer,  there  was  no  further  turning 
back.  In  process  of  time  he  became  A Pfeacher. 
a colporteur,  and  then  preacher  at 
Hsien-t‘ao-chen  Fairy  Peach  Mart  ”), 
an  out-station  in  Mr.  Cornaby’s  circuity 
where  great  firmness,  tact,  and  wisdona 
were  needed ; for  the  three  hundred 
who  immediately  began  to  attend  were 
all  firmly  persuaded  that  they  could 


Ordination, 


232  The  Call  of  Cathay 

thereby  gain  certain  privileges  in  the 
law-courts,  as  their  neighbours  the 
Roman  Catholic  adherents  had  done. 
For  three  years  he  preached  the  Gospel, 
refusing  to  put  down  a single  name  as 
“ on  trial.’’  The  three  hundred  dwin- 
dled to  thirty,  many  of  whom  became 
sturdy  Christians,  even  under  severe 
persecution. 

Lo  Yu-shan  was  a man  of  good 
education,  delighting  in  ancient  Chinese 
belles  lettres ; he  was  also  an  intelligent 
Bible-student,  of  deep  spiritual  in- 
sight ; and  a brave  man  withal.  He 
was  told  there  was  a plot  to  destroy 
the  premises,  which  could  be  averted 
if  he  removed  the  signboard.  Instead, 
he  called  the  converts  to  a prayer- 
meeting on  the  premises  during  the 
day  of  danger.  And  there  was  not  the 
slightest  disturbance. 

It  was  with  great  confidence  that  the 
Synod  ordained  him.  And  when  it  was 
decided  to  commence  work  in  Hunan  he 
became  the  able  colleague  of  the  present 
writer  for  pioneering  in  Changsha. 
He  made  an  abiding  impression  in  that 
city,  upon  missionaries,  inquirers,  and 


Photo  by'] 


[TF,  ^ . Cornabij. 


p.  232 J 


THE  EEV.  LO  YU-SHAN. 


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Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  233 

outsiders.  On  Easter  Day,  1903,  though 
already  in  the  grip  of  a fatal  disease, 
after  but  two  years’  work  there,  he  had 
the  joy  of  baptising  our  first  three 
eonverts  in  that  provinee.  In  the  hot 
summer  he  passed  away,  leaving  a 
vaeant  plaee  that  has  not  been  filled. 

Lo  Yu-shan  was  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable Christians  that  God  has  ever 
given  us  in  Central  China.  Truly  a 
man  of  God,  and  of  prayer  ! 

Si  Tai-kai  is  a native  of  Pingkiang.  Si  Tai^kai. 
His  temperament  is  impressionable  and 
religious  ; and  mueh  family  siekness  and 
bereavement,  and  the  loss  in  quick 
succession  of  three  young  girls  who  had 
in  turn  been  selected  as  his  future  wife, 
caused  him  to  seek  by  a life  of  asceticism 
to  propitiate  the  vindictive  spirits  who 
so  evidently  were  the  enemies  of  his 
family. 

He  took  vegetarian  vows.  His  daily  A Vegetarian, 
diet  was  merely  rice  and  a few  vege- 
tables and  herbs.  He  sought  merit 
by  liberating  birds  and  fishes.  These 
he  bought  from  the  hawkers  on  the 
streets,  and  he  would  open  the  cage 

8* 


Becomes  a 
Buddhist 


Hears  the 
Gospeh 


234  The  Call  of  Cathay 

doors  and  let  the  birds  go  free,  while 
the  live  fishes  were  carried  to  the 
nearest  pond  and  set  at  liberty. 

He  decided  to  join' a Buddhist  sect; 
but  as  many  of  these  sects  are  in  the 
main  secret  societies,  the  clan  elders  were 
much  opposed  to  his  doing  so.  They 
threatened  death  by  drowning  if  he  did 
not  recant,  but  the  fearless  young  man 
bade  them  do  their  worst.  He  dared  to 
face  death  for  his  religious  convictions. 
He  at  once  became  famous,  and  soon 
from  that  countryside  many  were  per- 
suaded to  take  vegetarian  vows  and  to 
join  his  sect.  He  and  his  converts  made 
long  pilgrimages  to  an  important  monas- 
tery in  Hupeh.  The  abbot  was  so 
impressed  with  the  earnestness  of  the 
young  devotee  that  he  offered  to  ini- 
tiate him  into  all  the  mystic  rites  of 
the  Buddhist  religion,  and  to  nominate 
him  as  his  successor  in  office. 

Upon  one  of  these  pilgrimages  this 
earnest  seeker  for  truth  casually  entered 
the  Methodist  preaching-hall  at  Tung- 
cheng,  our  farthest  Hupeh  outpost  on 
the  eastern  frontier  of  Hunan.  He 
was  very  interested  in  what  he  heard, 


Wesleyan  Missions  in  Hunan  235 

but  disputed  with  the  preacher,  chal- 
lenging all  he  taught.  Later,  he  met 
a Christian  colporteur  and  others  who 
gave  him  further  instruction,  and  ul- 
timately he  renounced  Buddhism  and 
his  vegetarian  vows,  and  was  baptised 
at  Changsha,  on  Easter  Sunday,  1903, 
by  Lo  Yu-shan.  The  Buddhist  zealot 
became  a Methodist  preacher,  and  has 
been  instrumental  in  leading  many  of 
his  former  disciples  to  the  Christ  whom 
he  has  found. 


ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  see  what  part  the  Chinese 
Church  must  play  in  the  evangelisation  of  China. 

1.  Summarise  the  references  (in  this  chapter)  to 
the  part  Chinese  Christians  have  played  in  the 
evangelisation  of  Hunan. 

2.  What  advantages  has  the  trained  Chinese 
worker  over  the  foreign  missionary  ? 

REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

Broomhall,  M. — Chinese  Empire  (pages  164—89). 

Pioneer  Work  in  Hunan. 

Allan,  C.  W. — Our  Entry  into  Hunan. 

Ghu  and  Lo  : Two  Chinese  Pastors. 
W.M.M.S. — The  General  Report. 


CHAPTER  VII 


“The 

Changeless 

East” 


NEW  CHINA  AND  ITS  PROBLEMS 

It  has  been  the  custom  of  the  Western 
writers,  with  China  especially  in  mind, 
to  speak  of  the  ‘‘  Changeless  East.” 
Thus  Dr.  A.  B.  Bruce,  to  quote  one 
of  many  distinguished  writers,  wrote, 
somewhere  before  1900,  of  “ that  stereo- 
typed, custom-ridden  Oriental  race, 
the  Chinese.”  And  Professor  Henry 
Drummond,  after  his  visit  to  China, 
wrote  in  January  1899  : “ This  nation, 

as  every  one  knows,  is  an  instance  of 
arrested  development.  On  a fair  way 
to  become  a higher  vertebrate,  it  has 
stopped  short  at  the  crustacean, — the 
external  shell  of  custom  and  tradition 
so  hardened  by  the  deposit  of  centuries, 
as  to  make  the  evolutionist’s  demand 
for  mobility,  i.e,  for  capacity  to  change, 
almost  non-existent.” 

Both  remarks  seemed  fully  justified 

236 


HIS  EXCELLENCY  CHANG  CHIH-TIJNG. 

The  Grand  Old  Man  of  China  on  a car  of  the  Peking-Hankow  Railway. 

p.  236] 


New  China  and  its  Problems  237 

at  the  time  they  were  written,  but  they 
read  strangely  to  any  one  in  China  to- 
day. In  a sense  it  is  hardly  correct  China  Never 
to  say  that  China  was  ever  changeless,  Chang 
From  Confucius’  death  till  the  present 
day  there  have  been  245  emperors, 
with  very  few  uneventful  reigns  among 
them.  There  have  been  fifty  great  re- 
bellions in  the  last  two  thousand  years, 
and  local  insurrections  almost  every 
year.  China  has  been  split  up  and  re- 
united several  times.  Since  a.d.  317, 
some  1,590  years  in  all,  she  has  been 
ruled  in  part,  or  as  a whole,  by  foreigners 
689  years  : Huns  (317-386  inclusive)  ; 

Turkic  rulers  (387-550)  ; Tartar  (1280- 
1367)  ; Manchus  (1644  onwards).  On 
the  other  hand,  with  the  exception  of 
new  religious  sentiments,  as  those  of 
Buddhism,  and  Buddhism  coloured  by 
Nestorianism,  there  have  been  few  new 
elements  introduced  into  the  thought 
of  her  thinkers  or  the  life  of  her  masses. 

Her  local  government — the  element 
which  has  bulked  so  largely  in  the 
popular  consciousness — has  been  along 
the  same  old  ruts  all  the  time,  in  its 
habit  of  dispensing  justice  to  the  high- 


238  The  Call  of  Cathay 

est  bidder  by  unsalaried  mandarin- 
dom.  “ Empires  fall,  Ministries  pass 
away,  but  the  Bureaux  remain,”  as  Due 
FAudiffret-Pasquier  onee  wrote.  The 
history  of  China  in  the  thirteenth 
eentury  speaks  of  the  offieials  “ shearing 
the  populace  ” ; and  certain  words  of 
Talleyrand  seem  to  apply  to  whole 
millenniums  of  China’s  past  : “ Society 

is  divisible  into  two  classes  : shearers 
and  shorn.”  China’s  ideals,  in  China’s 
own  words,  have  been  Name  and  Gain  ; 
and  for  the  most  part  the  life  of  her 
scholars  and  people  has  been  a struggle 
for  either  or  both,  and  for  little  else. 
Not  always  selfishly,  however ; for  the 
family  unit  has  occupied  the  place  of  our 
capital  I,  and  the  family  bond  has  been 
kept  well  cemented.  Beyond  the  family 
the  outlook  has  been  exceedingly  local. 
Clans  have  been  clannish  indeed ; 
villages  of  the  same  surname  have  been 
little  realms  by  themselves.  At  most, 
the  general  conception  has  been  pro- 
vincial. “ China  is  a mere  congeries  of 
provincial  governorships,  totally  devoid 
of  anything  worthy  to  be  called  national 
unity,”  wrote  a leader-writer  in  the 


New  China  and  its  Problems  239 

Times  of  September  30,  1895,  and  he 
was  not  wide  of  the  mark. 

China  has  been  a land  of  stagnation  Largely  to 
till  the  eomparatively  reeent  inpouring  isolation, 
of  Western  ideas.  This  has  arisen  from 
her  isolation,  or  the  mere  impaet  of 
raees  so  nearly  akin  to  her  own  as  to 
be  summed  up  in  the  common  name  of 
Mongoloid.  There  has  been  nothing 
in  her  history,  until  late  years,  answer- 
ing to  the  impact  of  Roman  civilisation 
upon  the  ancient  Britons,  and  then  the 
coming  of  the  Norsemen,  the  Anglo- 
Saxons,  the  Normans,  into  our  own 
land.  It  has  been  a case  of  iso-fertili- 
sation, which  has  resulted  in  sterilisa- 
tion, as  regards  thought  and  aspiration, 
since  China  ceased  to  be  a continent 
with  some  fourteen  contending  States 
in  the  dynasty  called  Chow  (1122-256 
B.C.),  when  she  produced  all  her  Sages 
and  all  her  Classics,  with  only  com- 
mentaries upon  them  since.  Truly  a 
case  of  ‘‘ arrested  development,”  though 
not  hopelessly  “ crustacean,”  with  “ a 
capacity  to  change  almost  non-existent.” 

Nestorian  foreigners  and  Roman  Nestorian  and 
Catholic  foreigners  do  not  seem  to  have  Liliuence. 


China^s 

Awakening* 


240  The  Call  of  Cathay 

modified  China’s  public  opinion  much, 
for  they  were  imperially  favoured  ones ; 
and  as  Father  Ripa  testified  of  the 
latter  in  1711  : 

“ Their  garments  are  made  of  the  richest  materials  ; 
they  go  nowhere  on  foot,  but  always  in  sedans,  or 
horseback,  or  house-boats,  with  numerous  attendants 
following  them.” 

The  populace  have  regarded  them  as 
foreign  officials ; and  as  Confucius  said 
of  the  popular  gods,  “ Respect  the 
spirits,  but  keep  aloof  from  them,”  the 
nation  as  a whole  has  maintained  an 
attitude  of  “ aloofness  ” — generally  of 
respectful  fear,  but  sometimes  of  active 
antagonism.  The  nation  as  such  did 
not  take  their  influence  into  itself  as  a 
germ  that  would  bring  forth  some  new 
thing.  The  foreign  body  introduced 
into  the  systern  remained  unabsorbed, 
unassimilated. 

But  from  1901  onwards  new  forces 
have  brought  about  the  beginning  of  a 
new  China ; the  nation  has  changed 
more  in  the  first  decade  of  the  twentieth 
century  than  in  all  the  twenty  cen- 
turies previous. 

The  change  seems  sudden,  and  will 


THE  OED  METHOD  OE  TRANSPORTATION. 
A fair  breeze  on  the  Yangtse. 


Photo  hijl 


[TF.  A.  Cornaly. 


THE  NEW  METHOD  OF  TRANSPORTATION. 
Train  entering  HantowTille  station. 


[p.  241 


New  China  and  its  Problems  241 

go  down  to  posterity  on  the  pages  of 
history  as  one  of  the  great  events  of 
the  world,  an  event  comparable  to  the 
Renaissance  in  Europe,  in  the  fifteenth 
and  sixteenth  centuries.  Sudden  in- 
deed this  change  of  an  empire-continent 
in  a single  decade  ! And  yet  not  with- 
out a series  of  causes,  growing  in  their 
dynamic  force  throughout  the  nineteenth 
century.  China  is  awake  ! What  has 
awakened  her  ? 

I.  The  coming  of  the  merchant. 

The  opening  of  Treaty  Ports,  which 
were  and  are  very  up-to-date  Euro- 
pean (or  Eur- American,  as  we  can  say 
in  Chinese)  cities  and  municipalities, 
dotted  about  the  land  of  hoary  tradi- 
tion and  custom,  and  disregarding  both 
—with  their  solid-built  houses  and  offices 
and  shops,  their  macadamised  roads, 
horse-carriages,  bicycles,  motor-cars, 
and  even,  latterly,  electric  trams  ; their 
police  force,  their  sanitary  regulations  ; 
and  the  fact  of  men  and  women  meeting 
and  walking  together  as  equals,  some 
of  them  arm-in-arm  in  broad  daylight. 
And  then  the  goods  poured  into  sur- 
rounding districts  by  the  foreign  mer- 


Causes : 

I.  The  Coming 
of  the  Merchant. 


242  The  Call  of  Cathay 

chants  : matches  instead  of  the  flint  and 
steel  and  rolled  paper  spills  ; paraffin 
oil  instead  of  either  rape  oil,  eotton- 
seed  oil,  or  tea  oil  (from  a eoarse  tea- 
plant)  ; soap  instead  of  alkaline  bean 
pods  ; Laneashire  calicoes  instead  of  the 
narrow-length  fluffy  cotton- cloth  woven 
by  the  women  in  the  farm-houses, — 
these  and  a hundred  other  things  became 
adopted,  absorbed,  regarded  as  neces- 
sities by  hundreds  of  thousands  around 
the  ports,  and  as  desirable  things  by 
thousands  more  farther  inland. 

II.  The  Coming  II.  The  comiug  of  the  Protestant  mis- 

of  the  Mission-  . i • . j.  t x £ x.i 

ary.  sionary,  living  near  to  the  life  01  the 

people,  walking  and  chatting  with  them 
in  no  superior  fashion — exeept  as  re- 
gards the  novel  thoughts  that  were 
natural  to  him  ; called  indeed  “ oeean 
demon,”  but  surely  a man  of  like 
passions  with  themselves,  when  they 
saw  him  leading  his  little  child  along 
outside  the  city.^  Travelling  on  foot 

^ When  Dr.  F.  Porter  Smith,  of  the  in 

the  mid  sixties  carried  his  baby  a little  way  through 
the  streets  of  Hankow,  it  made  an  immense  and  a 
favourable  impression.  “ Look  ! look  ! he’s  carry- 
ing his  own  baby.  He  can’t  be  a ‘ demon  ’ after  all, 
can  he  ? ” 


New  China  and  its  Problems  243 

or  in  the  ordinary  Chinese  hire-boats  ; 
“ half-giving,  half-selling  ” his  traets 
and  Gospels  written  in  almost  the  lan- 
guage of  the  street ; preaehing  in  the 
“ Glad-news  Hall  ” and  telling  out  that 
the  Shang-Ti  (Sovereign  on  High)  of 
antiquity  is  his  Father  and  theirs,  a 
Father  with  Whom  he  holds  converse 
daily  ; telling  out  strange  tales  of  One 
in  West  Asia  Who  lived  the  life  that 
Chinese  Sages  had  described  as  ideal,  and 
went  far  beyond  their  ideal : Who  loved 
His  enemies,  and  when  they  conspired 
against  Him  and  captured  Him,  and 
wronged  Him,  and  stirred  up  a riot,  and 
overawed  their  official-in-chief,  and  had 
Him  tortured  to  death — prayed  for  them 
all ; and  then,  that  He  did  not  remain 
dead,  being  the  Son  of  God  ; that  He 
had  given  His  life  for  a ransom  for  all 
men,  and  still  is  living,  the  great  Friend 
of  all  men,  and  Saviour  from  sin  and 
hell  too,  if  they  will  but  have  it  so  ; 
telling  out  also  that  by  penitent  prayer 
to  the  Sovereign  on  high  new  forces 
of  goodness  pour  into  the  character, 
enabling  a man  to  do  what  he  knows 
he  ought  to  do — bringing,  indeed,  an 


244  The  Call  of  Cathay 

unseen  spirit  of  goodness  to  live  within 
him,  even  as  it  has  been  half-believed 
that  certain  departed  spirits,  that  have 
been  deified,  can  come  and  inhabit  the 
wood  and  plaster  images  in  the 
temples. 

Here  were  new  thoughts  and  considera- 
tions for  the  masses,  which,  even  if  they 
were  not  all  quite  absorbed,  were  bound 
to  set  men  thinking  as  their  fathers 
had  never  thought  for  thousands  of 
years.  And  then,  the  skilled  hospital 
work,  the  miracles  wrought  there,  the 
“ wizard  hand  bringing  back  the  spring- 
tide  ” to  hopeless  cases  with  a “ kind- 
ness equal  to  that  of  new  creation,”  to 
quote  but  two  of  the  testimonial 
tablets  given  to  Dr.  Sydney  R.  Hodge, 
and  to  his  colleagues  and  predecessors 
in  various  cities.  Then,  schools  for 
girls  as  well  as  boys  ! Who  ever  heard 
of  g^VZ-schools  before  ? And  the  tripping 
feet  of  little  Western  damsels,  untram- 
melled by  the  cruel  foot-compression  of 
many  generations.  Here  were  facts, 
facts  that  were  a ferment,  a dynamic 
force  of  transformation,  introduced  into 
the  innermost  lump  of  age-kneaded  meal. 


New  China  and  its  Problems  245 

Thus  the  soul  of  the  masses  began  to 
awake. 

III.  Further,  the  rise  of  missionary  iii.  Missionary 
literature  and  journalism,  on  general  lines, 
for  the  hitherto  “ stand-off  ” seholar 
and  mandarin — dealing  not  just  with 
foreign  ideas,  but  bringing  the  wisdom 
of  the  West  to  bear  on  China’s  own 
problems,  national,  economic,  social, 
moral,  religious;  and  that,  too,  in  the 
choicest  literary  language  of  aesthetic 
scholarship — ^with  the  aid  of  Chinese 
scribes  of  cultured  abilities.  Magazine 
newspapers,  and  with  telegraphic  news 
too  ! Who  ever  heard  of  these  things 
‘before  ? And  illustrated  with  pictures 
that  look  just  like  the  thing  to  be  por- 
trayed, instead  of  aesthetic  poems  of 
line  and  wash,  that  glorify  the  landscape 
into  impossible  proportions,  or  look 
down  on  a hall  from  the  rafters  ^ ; and 
the  matter  in  these  magazines  brings 
the  real  things  described  graphically 
before  the  mind.  Moreover,  these  maga- 


1 This  downward  perspective  in  Chinese  art  arose 
from  their  having  to  ascend  a neighbouring  hill  to 
gain  a picture  of  a city  or  wide  landscape,  and  thus 
it  became  the  correct  fashion  for  interiors  also. 


IV,  Rise  of 

Chinese 

Journalism, 


246  The  Call  of  Cathay 

zines  bring  insight  into  the  teaching 
of  history,  in  various  countries  and 
ages,  showing  what  results  follow  certain 
courses  in  the  long-run  ; showing  too  how 
problems  as  pressing  as  those  of  China 
have  been  successfully  dealt  with  else- 
where. What  wonder  that  these  books 
and  magazines,  issued  by  that  Society 
which  is  now  known  as  the  Christian 
Literature  Society  for  China,  as  well 
as  the  books  issued  by  the  Educational 
Society,  scholarly  and  for  scholars,  put 
new  ideas  into  their  older  readers,  and 
new  impulses  into  their  younger  ones  ! 
So  that  various  experiments  in  Western 
methods,  from  minor  things  on  to  the 
founding  of  great  iron  and  steel  works,  and 
the  establishment  of  the  telegraph  from 
city  to  city,  became  the  natural  result. 

IV.  The  rise  of  Chinese  journalism. 

Before  missionary  journalism  began 
China  had  but  the  Peking  Gazette,  or 
Court  Chronicle  and  recorder  of  edicts 
and  the  like.^  In  1872,  however, 

1 The  Peking  Gazette  first  appeared  911  a.d.  to- 
wards the  beginning  of  the  Sung  Dynasty,  but  came 
out  only  at  irregular  intervals  until  1351,  since  when 
it  has  been  issued  four  times  in  each  Chinese  moon. 


THE  GREAT  IRON  AND  STEEL  WORKS,  HANYANG. 


New  China  and  its  Problems  247 

it  occurred  to  two  enterprising  mer- 
chant brothers  in  Shanghai  to  finance 
and  start  a Chinese  daily  paper,  the 
literary  material  to  be  supplied  by 
Chinese  article-writers,  with  some  assis- 
tance at  first ; the  foreign  telegrams 
to  be  translated  from  English  ; and  a staff 
of  newsgatherers  to  be  secured  in  various 
Chinese  cities.  The  result  was  the  Shen 
Pao  {Shen  being  the  name  of  a notable 
worthy  of  the  region  in  old  time),  which 
is  still  running.  This  was  followed  by 
a native  newspaper  in  Hong  Kong  ; by 
the  Sin  Wen  Pao  (“  News  Gazette  ”), 
in  Shanghai,  1894  ; and  the  Chung 
Wai  Jih  Pao  (“  Universal  Gazette  ”), 
m Shanghai,  1898  ; the  two  former 
somewhat  moderated  by  foreign  influ- 
ence, the  third,  and  its  later  contem- 
poraries in  various  Treaty  Ports,  hardly 
at  all  ; although  till  after  1900  all 
the  native  newspapers  of  China,  being 
drastically  disallowed  in  inland  cities, 
by  the  Court  ^ and  officials  alike,  could 

^ The  Empress-Dowager’s  edict  of  October  8,  1898, 
declared  : “ As  newspapers  only  serve  to  excite  the 
masses,  to  subvert  the  present  order  of  things,  and 
the  editors  are  composed  of  the  dregs  of  the  lite- 
rary classes,  no  good  can  be  served  by  the  continua- 


248  The  Call  of  Cathay 

only  exist  under  the  aegis  of  foreign 
protection  and  nominal  ownership,  with- 
in the  various  municipalities. 

In  view  of  the  liberties  native  news- 
papers have  since  taken  in  criticising 
Chinese  officialdom,  it  is  interesting  to 
read,  in  a speech  on  The  Unpopularity 
of  the  Foreigner  in  China,”  some  words 
of  Wu  Ting-fang,  Chinese  Minister  to 
the  United  States,  November  1900,  de- 
livered at  Philadelphia  : 


“ The  general  tone  of  the  foreign  press  in  China  is 
calculated  to  set  the  whole  Chinese  nation  against 
foreigners  and  things  foreign.  Columns  are  devoted 
in  almost  every  issue  to  denouncing  the  Government 
and  its  officials,  and  condemning  everything  which 
the  people  hold  dear  and  sacred.” 


The  sole  fraction  of  truth  in  this 
specious  reasoning  as  to  foreign  unpopu- 
larity was  a remark  here  and  there  in 
the  Western  press  on  gross  errors  of 
policy,  and  miscarriage  of  justice,  and 
a word  or  two  on  Chinese  superstitions  ; 


tion  of  such  dangerous  instruments,  therefore 
We  hereby  command  the  entire  suppression  of  all 
newspapers  jDublished  within  the  empire,  while  the 
editors  connected  with  them  are  to  be  arrested  and 
punished  with  the  utmost  severity  of  the  law.” 


ISTEW  CHINA  : MAKING  TYPE  IN  A PRINTING  ESTABLISHMENT. 


Thoto  hy\  \.C.  Bone. 

NEW  CHINA  : SCHOOLBOYS  TAKING  A STROLL  WITH  DRUM- 
AND-EIFE  BAND. 


[p.  249 


New  China  and  its  Problems  249 

all  three  items,  elaborated  into  burning 
artieles,  being  three  ehief  neeessities  for 
popularity  and  a paying  eireulation, 
as  regards  the  Chinese  journalism  of 
reeent  years.  Certain  advantages  were 
onee  desired  by  the  native  press  of  a 
eertain  Treaty  Port,  and  were  offered 
as  requested  on  the  eonditions  (1)  that 
there  was  to  be  no  defamation  of  the 
Court ; and  (2)  no  vituperation  as  re- 
gards mandarins ; and  after  due  eonsider- 
ation  both  restrietions  were  rejeeted. 

The  native  papers  of  the  Treaty  Ports 
deal  in  outspoken,  if  eourteous,  remon- 
stranees  with  the  Central  Government; 
outspoken  strictures  on  mandarins  by 
name,  and  almost  ribald  pictorial  cari- 
cature of  mandarindom  in  general ; to- 
gether with  strong  language  concerning 
China’s  sovereign  rights  and  their  in- 
vasion by  foreign  powers.  Those  in- 
land, away  from  Treaty  Ports,  are  under 
official  “ inspiration,”  and  so  do  not 
criticise  the  “ powers  that  be  ” ; but 
are  as  outspoken  as  the  others  on  the 
subject  of  foreign  aggression,  real  or 
assumed. 

The  Chinese  press  consists  of  some 


V*  The  New 
Learning. 


250  The  Call  of  Cathay 

fifty -five  chief  trumpets  “ sounding  an 
alarm  ” throughout  the  land  ; or  so 
many  galvanic  batteries  delivering  shock 
after  shock  of  arousal  to  their  educated 
readers.  And  this  factor  in  the  awaken- 
ing of  a quarter  of  the  human  race 
can  hardly  be  over-estimated. 

V.  The  New  Learning  and  rise  of 
Young  China. 

From  the  year  b.c.  134  until  1901  a.d. 
(in  addition  to  silver  recommendations) 
all  official  posts  were  obtained  as  prizes 
for  an  aesthetic  literary  style  in  ser- 
monettes  on  texts  from  the  Classics, 
at  the  annual  county  examinations,  on 
through  the  triennial  provincial  exami- 
nations, to  those  still  higher  in  the 
capital  itself.  And  the  ideal  of  that 
style  was  the  antique — the  literary 
matter  itself  being  quite  a secondary 
consideration. 

But  on  August  20,  1901,  a decree 
was  issued  ordering  the  substitution  of 
essays  on  modern  matters.  Western 
laws  and  constitutions,  and  political 
economy.  This  was  followed  by  a 
series  of  decrees  on  the  subject  of 
education  : viz.,  September  13,  a decree 


New  China  and  its  Problems  251 

commanding  all  schools  and  colleges 
in  the  empire  to  deal  prominently  with 
Western  learning ; Septem^ber  17,  a 
decree  commanding  all  provincial  vice- 
roys and  governors  to  ‘‘  send  young 
men  of  scholarly  promise  and  ability 
abroad,  to  study  such  branches  of 
Western  science  or  art  as  would  be 
best  suited  to  their  tastes  and  abilities, 
so  that  they  may  return  in  time  to 
China,  and  place  the  results  of  their 
learning  at  the  service  of  the  empire  ” ; 
September  2,  1905,  a decree  abolishing 
the  examinations  for  the  degree  of  B.A. 
that  had  been  held  every  year  and 
a half ; all  such  and  higher  degrees  in 
future  to  be  gained  through  the  colleges 
in  the  provinces  and  the  University  in 
Peking. 

Here  were  tremendous  changes, 
wrought  in  a few  years  by  a stroke  of 
the  “ vermilion  pencil  ” of  the  Empress- 
Dowager  in  the  name  of  the  Emperor 
Kuang  Hsii.  The  immediate  effect  of 
the  first  edicts  was  a great  demand 
for  books  such  as  the  C.L.S.  and  the 
Educational  Society  had  on  sale  ; the 
next  result  was  the  flooding  of  the 


252  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Chinese  book-market  with  translations, 
chiefly  by  Chinese  in  Japan.  The 
further  result  was  the  sending  abroad 
of  thousands  of  students  to  Japan  and 
to  other  lands — those  in  Japan  being  at 
one  time  as  many  as  14,000 — and  these, 
both  in  Japan  and  in  France,  getting 
strongly  tinged  with  revolutionary 
sentiment,  with  the  story  of  the  French 
Revolution  as  their  favourite  model ; 
on  their  return,  also,  stoutly  resisting 
all  foreign  mining  concessions,  foreign 
loans  for  railways,  and  foreign  control 
of  all  kinds. 

The  more  ardent  spirits  in  Young 
China  to-day  would  wish  to  discredit 
and  oust  the  Manchus  from  the  Central 
Government,  and  secure  the  immediate 
opening  of  a national  parliament 
(promised  for  1918) ; and  they  would 
probably  endorse  most  of  the  following 
demands  made  by  the  Boxers  in  one  of 
their  proclamations  (August  1900) : 


“ 1. — All  indemnities  still  claimed  by  the  foreign 
powers  to  be  null  and  void. 

2.  — ^All  foreign  ships  of  war  that  enter  Chinese 
waters  to  be  disallowed  to  leave  their  berths. 

3,  — All  foreign  settlements  and  Treaty  Ports 


New  China  and  its  Problems  253 

to  be  extended  to  twice  their  present  size  (and 
foreigners  kept  rigidly  within  them). 

4.  — The  churches  of  the  various  foreign  missions  in 
China  to  be  confiscated,  and  made  common  property. 

5.  — All  missionaries  to  return  to  their  respective 
countries. 

6.  — Japan  to  return  Formosa  to  China. 

7.  — Germany  to  return  Kiaoehow  to  China. 

8.  Russia  (and  Japan)  to  evacuate  Manchuria. 

9.  — The  Imperial  Maritime  Customs  to  be  delivered 
over  to  Chinese  control.” 

These,  together  with  the  abolition 
of  all  Consular  Courts  in  China,  and 
the  removal  of  all  barriers  to  Chinese 
residence  abroad,  might  perchance  make 
up  the  sum  of  advanced  Young  China’s 
demands.  Where  the  power  to  regain 
Formosa,  Kiaoehow,  and  China’s  supre- 
macy in  Manchuria  is  to  come  from 
is  another  matter  ! But  even  this  has 
been  broached  in  a Young  China  news- 
paper of  October  17,  1909,  where  the 
formation  of  a reserve  of  10,000,000 
“ Volunteers  ” {ix.  Boxers)  was  advo- 
cated in  detail ! Happily,  China  is  hardly 
likely  thus  to  court  her  own  destruction. 

VI.  Mercantile  and  political  pressure 
from  foreign  ^powers. 

As  a consequence  of  the  policy  of  ex- 
clusion held  by  Young  China,  there  is 


VL  Pressure 
from  Foreign 
Powers. 


2 54  The  Call  of  Cathay 

the  fact  of  ardent  offers  of  capital  to 
China  by  foreign  financiers  for  railway 
loans,  and  overtures  by  foreign  syn- 
dicates for  developing  China’s  resources 
(both  construed  by  Young  China  as 
“ poisonous  intrigue  ”) ; and  such 
things  as  the  Russo-Japanese  grip  on 
Manchuria. 

'' Young  China."  China,  then,  as  regards  her  leaders 
of  public  opinion,  and  her  future  offi- 
cials, the  rising  generation  of  students 
and  graduates,  is  awake,  and  inclined 
to  be  rampant.  The  Boxers  that  grew 
into  being  at  the  Empress-Dowager’s 
decree  of  November  5,  1898  (which 
was  taken  seriously  in  two  or  three 
northern  provinces  where  there  had 
been  a year  of  scarcity),  mostly  repre- 
sented a Young  China  of  an  uneducated 
sort.  The  Young  China  of  the  present 
day  has  some  culture,  and  at  the  least  a 
smattering  of  Western  learning,  in  some 
cases  much  more  then  a smattering. 
Darwin,  Huxley,  and  Spencer  are  its 
household  words,  and  Rousseau,  of  all 
men,  is  one  of  its  pet  ideals  ! In  all 
matters,  mental,  moral,  and  national, 
it  is  possessed  of  a “ blind,  turbulent 


YOUNG  CHINA. 
A game  oi'  dominoes 


New  China  and  its  Problems  255 

heaving  toward  freedom  ” ; but  chiefly, 
if  the  truth  were  told,  towards  con- 
stitutional liberty  of  a modified  Western 
type,  in  which  it  can  find  office. 

The  Chinese  of  a century  ago  every- 
where exhibited  “ the  full  efflorescence 
of  that  ignorance  which  permitted  them 
to  believe  themselves  the  most  enlight- 
ened nation  in  the  world  ” (words  used 
of  the  English  by  Disraeli  in  Tan- 
cred)  ; now,  the  Chinese  scholars  and 
populace  are  persuading  themselves  that 
they  are  the  most  oppressed  nation  in 
the  world.  Let  us  see  what  elements 
of  oppression  appear  to  the  Chinese 
mind. 

1.  “ Oppression  from  Foreign  Au- 
thority ” — a very  hateful  term  in  China. 
In  reality,  this  exists  chiefly  on  the  map. 
There  is  of  course  no  “ oppression  ” of 
the  Chinese  themselves  by  foreigners. 
England  took  Hong  Kong  in  1840,  but 
has  given  far  greater  liberty  and  security 
to  its  Chinese  residents  than  they  could 
have  had  on  the  mainland.  Five  Treaty 
Ports  were  opened  by  the  treaty  of 
Nanking  in  1842,  seven  others  in  China 
Proper  by  1860,  and  several  others 


Young  China's 
Grievances. 


(i)  ^‘Foreign 
Oppression," 


256  The  Call  of  Cathay 

since ; and  in  none  of  them  are  the 
Chinese  “ oppressed.”  In  1897  occurred 
what  the  Spectator  called  “ the  piraey 
of  Kiaochow  ” ; but  neither  there,  nor 
in  Port  Arthur  under  the  Japanese  after 
the  China- Japan  war,  nor  under  the 
Russians,  nor  again  under  the  Japanese, 
has  there  been  oppression”  of  Chinese ; 
nor  is  there  in  Manchuria,  so  dominated 
by  Russo- Japanese  influence.  The  ‘‘op- 
pression,” then,  is  in  sentimental  regions, 
but  regions  that  a patriot  would  natur- 
ally regard  as  real.  So  that  there  is  a 
strong  tendency  to  feel  that  foreign 
nations  are  China’s  enemies — to  be 
resisted  by  force  if  that  force  were 
available.  Hence  the  energy  thrown 
into  military  drill  in  China’s  colleges, 
the  students  being  more  ardent  about 
it  than  their  drill-masters. 

2.  The  Boxer  indemnity,  still  paid 
annually  by  people  in  provinces  that 
had  nothing  to  do  with  that  Manchu- 
clique  plot.^  And  as  the  people  have 
to  pay  each  annual  amount  (say)  thrice 

1 The  phrase  “ Manchu-cHque  ” is  used  to  absolve 
the  enlightened  Manchus  from  any  share  in  the  move- 
ment. 


Photo  'by'] 


[ir.  A.  Cornuby. 


HOW  THE  POOHEST  LIVE. 
Each  hut  contains  a family. 


Photo  by] 


[7?.  Hutchinson. 


A COTTAGE  IN  SOUTH  CHINA. 


[p.  257 


New  China  and  its  Problems  257 

over,  owing  to  official  “ squeeze,”  this 
is  felt  to  be  a heavy  burden. 

3.  Im  pecunio  us  ness,  also,  from  the  (3)  impecu^ 
very  reforms  that  China  has  begun  to 
adopt  so  eagerly.  As  a native  paper 
pointed  out  (May  1910)  : 


“ China  has  hurriedly  started  schools  and  colleges 
everywhere.  Police  forces,  industrial  bureaus, 
foreign-drilled  troops,  naval  schemes — all  of  them 
requiring  extra  rates  and  taxes  [all  of  which  rates 
and  taxes  are  subject  to  “ squeeze  ”j,  when  the 
country  is  already  impoverished  witli  the  Boxer 
indemnity,  and  the  interest  on  foreign  loans,  and 
an  utterly  chaotic  condition  of  national  finances, 
the  unrestricted  coinage  of  ten-cash  pieces  in  every 
province,  and  the  like  ; so  that  the  expense  of  living 
has  well-nigh  doubled  in  ten  years,  with  no  corre- 
sponding rise  in  the  income  of  the  populace.” 


Hence,  when  rice  has  been  abnormally 
dear,  there  have  been  riots  in  various 
places,  as  in  Changsha  and  other  cities 
in  1910. 

4.  The  fact  of  the  Manchu  on  the  (4)  Manchu 
Throne.  But  here  again,  as  under  head- 
ing  1,  the  grievance  is  in  the  region 
of  sentiment.  For,  with  the  exception 
of  the  fatal  Boxer  blunder  (and  a great 
one  it  was),  the  Manchu  Dynasty  has 

9*^ 


Chilians  Real 
Grievances, 


25^  The  Call  of  Cathay 

served  China  as  well  as  any  native 
dynasty  has  ever  done. 

Summing  up  the  situation,  then,  we 
find  that  China’s  really  dynamic  griev- 
ances are  from  conditions  within  the 
nation  itself,  rather  than  any  which  the 
Manchu  Dynasty  (excepting  the  Boxer 
plot)  or  foreign  powers  have  forced 
upon  her.  And  the  first  real  reform 
must  be  the  entire  reorganisation  of 
the  mandarin  system  : the  fixing  of 
real  and  adequate  salaries,  and  the 
discountenancing  of  official  “ squeeze  ” 
by  heavy  penalties ; which,  it  is  in- 
teresting to  note,  was  the  burden  of 
several  enactments  in  the  Code  of  Ham- 
murabi, 2,500* years  e.c.,  as  one  of  the 
C.L.S.  books  in  Chinese  points  out. 
Whether  this  most  radical  change  can 
be  effected  without  a national  parlia- 
ment, or  whether  a national  parliament 
would  attempt  to  overthrow  a system 
buttressed  by  so  many  vested  interests, 
it  is  hard  at  this  juncture  to  say.  The 
Imperial  Maritime  Customs,  controlled 
chiefly  by  British  officials,  is  a splendid 
object-lesson  of  what  solid  gain  may  accrue 
to  China  from  upright  and  adequately 


New  China  and  its  Problems  259 

salaried  collectors  of  dues.  And  it  is 
toward  that  object-lesson  that  China 
must  “ level  up  ” if  she  would  be  any- 
thing but  financially  crippled  as  a nation, 
and  Avould  avoid  a very  literal  oppres- 
sion of  the  “ myriad  populace  ” for  the 
fattening  of  a crowd  of  officials  and 
underlings,  caught  in  the  meshes  of  a 
corrupt  old  system  which  makes  Con- 
fucian  morality,  not  to  say  Christian 
righteousness,  impossible. 

As  to  anti-foreign  feeling,  New  China  Feeling  Against 
is  somewhat  fickle  in  its  dislikes,  Power., 

hatred  for  Germany  has  been  intense 
in  connection  with  Kiaochow  ; the 
country  was  stirred  up  to  a tremendous 
ferment  against  America  in  1905,  boy- 
cotting her  goods  everywhere,  in  re- 
taliation for  harsh  treatment  of  Chinese 
immigrants  ; against  England  in  1907, 
in  connection  with  her  offering  to  finance 
the  Chekiang  railway  ; and  there  is 
permanent  ill-feeling  against  Russia  and 
Japan  in  connection  with  Manchuria, 
although  it  is  commonly  believed  that 
that  region  was  sold  to  Russia  by  a 
certain  deceased  Chinese  notable- 
while  China  let  Japan  fight  her  battles 


The  Moral  and 
Religious  Out- 
look. 


(i)  The  Need 
for  Insistence 
upon  Moral 
Obligations. 


260  The  Call  of  Cathay 

for  the  recovery  of  it.  In  1910  the 
most  unpopular  of  foreign  nations 
in  China  is  undoubtedly  Japan.  And 
until  those  two  nations  combine  their 
forces  (as  they  are  extremely  unlikely 
ever  to  do),  or  until  one  of  them  be- 
comes the  master  of  the  other  (an 
extremely  remote  contingency),  there 
will  be  no  great  ‘‘  Yellow  Peril  ” such 
as  has  entered  the  fevered  dreams  of 
some  of  our  own  superficial  philosophers 
and  prognosticators. 

So  much  for  the  social,  economic, 
and  political  view  of  New  China. 
What  of  its  moral  and  religious  out- 
look ? 

1.  The  time  has  come  when  the 
missionary  must  be  the  advocate  of 
that  sound  moralist  Confucius  (as  far 
as  his  main  teaching  goes)  in  his  strong 
pleadings  for  the  fulfilment  of  human 
relations,  the  ultimate  basis  of  all  duty 
and  virtue,  versus  the  adoption  of  Rous- 
seau dreams  of  ideality  divorced  from 
common  morality.  The  essence  of  Con- 
fucius’ teaching  is  found  in  a comment 
on  an  ancient  book  of  geomancy,  the 
Book  of  Changes,  which  comment  it  is 


■ 5. 


A TABLET  TO  CONFUCIUS. 

Ill  a large  provincial  temple. 

[p.  261 


New  China  and  its  Problems  261 

likely  that  Confucius  himself  added.  It 
reads  literally  : 

“Father  father,  son  son,  elder-brother  elder- 
brother,  younger-brother  younger-brother,  husband 
husband,  wife  wife,  and  the  household  system 
rectified  ; rectified  households,  then  the  whole  realm 
(under  all  heaven)  established.” 

Meaning,  “ Let  the  father  be  a true 
father — fatherly,  and  the  son  a true 
son— filial,  brothers  brotherly,  husbands 
true  husbands,  and  wives  true  wives,” 
etc.  Here  is  the  principle  which  the 
Sage  worked  out  as  regards  the  main 
relations  of  life,  especially  those  of  the 
family.  And  he  touched  solid  bed-rock 
in  so  doing.  For  what  is  duty  but  the 
fulfilment  of  all  relations  to  our  related 
fellow  men,  according  to  our  relatedness 
to  them  ; and  to  God,  according  to  our 
relatedness  to  Him  ? I am  a son  or 
daughter,  I may  be  a brother  or  sister, 
I may  be  a husband  or  a wife,  I may  be 
a father  or  a mother  ; I have  friends, 
I have  neighbours,  I have  fellow  country- 
men, I am  a citizen  of  the  world  wherein 
‘‘  all  within  the  four  seas  are  brothers  ” ; 
I have  a God,  a Redeemer,  an  Enabler, 
— and  from  each  of  these  relationships 


262 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

spring  various  duties,  to  fulfil  which  is 
(in  the  old  Chinese  phrase)  “ to  accord 
with  Heaven.”  And  as  Mencius  de- 
clared : 

“ Those  who  accord  with  Heaven  are  preserved, 
those  discordant  with  Heaven  perish.” 

True  indeed  of  an  individual,  and  true 
of  a nation,  also  ; for  the  nations  of 
earth  are,  in  the  innermost  sense  of  the 
words,  prospering  or  perishing  in  so  far 
as  there  is  a sum-total  of  accordance 
with  Heaven  among  their  populace,  or 
the  reverse. 

Here,  in  China,  is  a sound  ethic,  an 
ultimate  basis  of  conduct.  It  is  ours 
to  uphold  and  interpret  it  ; and  to 
enforce  and  quicken  it  too,  by  the  moral 
dynamic  of  Christianity— power  from 
on  high,  received  through  penitent, 
Christ-recognising  prayer. 

(2)  The  Need  2.  The  Spiritual  view  of  the  universe 
must  be  upheld.  In  China,  never  a 
very  religious  land,  scores  and  hundreds 
of  temples  are  being  turned  into  school- 
houses.  Attacked  by  the  native  press, 
and  the  inflow  of  science,  the  days  of 
China’s  superstitions  are  numbered, 


New  China  and  its  Problems  263 

What  is  to  take  the  plaee  of  dying 
idolatries  and  dwindling  superstitions  ? 
That  is  the  burning  question  of  the  day. 
It  is  felt  to  be  a great  question,  even 
by  the  native  newspapers.  In  1903 
that  prominent  paper  the  Universal 
Gazette,  had  a powerful  artiele  headed, 
“ China  has  no  Religion,”  taking  up 
all  seemingly  religious  eustoms  and 
asking,  as  eaeh  passed  in  review, 
“ Where  is  there  any  religion  here  ? ” 
eoneluding  with  the  deduction  that 

“ taking  all  China  together,  there  is  not  to  be  found 
anything  truly  religious,  only  various  customs  that 
have  come  down  from  antiquity.” 

And  now  even  those  customs  are 
loosening.  A few  years  ago  the  Chinese 
of  the  Straits  Settlements  agreed  to  spare 
all  the  money  hitherto  spent  on  homage 
to  ancestors,  and  devote  it  to  the  educa- 
tion of  their  children.  An  enlightened  re- 
solve from  our  point  of  view,  but  a very 
materialistic  one  from  theirs.  Is  it  not 
better  to  believe  in  some  sort  of  patron 
spirits  in  the  unseen  than  to  believe 
in  no  spiritual  world  at  all  ? As  Lord 
Tennyson  once  said  : “ I tell  you  the 


264  The  Call  of  Cathay 

nation  without  faith  is  doomed  ; mere 
intellectual  life — however  advanced  or 
perfected — will  not  fill  the  void.”  And 
this  has  been  echoed  by  the  leading 
native  newspapers  of  China  (doubtless 
from  the  books  and  magazines  of  the 
C.L.S.).  A specimen  utterance  is  : 

“ Young  China  talks  glibly  of  Revolution,  as  though 
that  were  a panacea  for  all  ills,  forgetting  that  we 
have  had  as  many  revolutions  as  Europe,  and  have 
gained  no  uplifting  from  them,  only  a temporary 
relief  from  tyranny.  Whereas  Europe  has  gained 
by  hers.  Why  ? Because  there  were  moral  and 
religious  ideals  as  the  impulse  and  goal.” 


Surely  there  were  such  in  that  revolution 
against  Papal  absolutism  under  Luther 
and  his  successors,  however  much  politi- 
cal considerations  may  have  bulked  in 
England  at  the  first  onset.  Surely  there 
were  in  the  political  revolution  of  which 
Mazzini  was  the  soul,  if  Count  Cavour 
was  the  statesman  and  Garibaldi  the 
popular  leader.  “ Man  is  not  changed 
by  whitewashing  or  gilding  his  habita- 
tion,” protested  Mazzini;  “a  people 
cannot  be  regenerated  by  teaching  them 
the  worship  of  enjoyment.  It  is  the 
soul  which  creates  to  itself  a body,  the 


New  China  and  its  Problems  265 

idea  which  makes  for  itself  a habitation.” 
And  other  more  sacred  utterances  might 
be  quoted  from  that  man  to  whom  God 
was  so  real. 

“ History  knows  nothing  of  revivals 
of  moral  living  apart  from  some  new 
religious  impulse.  The  motive  power 
needed  has  always  come  through  leaders 
who  have  had  communion  with  the 
unseen,”  says  Professor  Lindsay.  In 
abolishing  opium-smoking  China  has 
quoted  no  moral  reason  for  doing  so ; 
just  the  one  motive — “ to  mak^  China 
strong.”  A materialistic  China  will  be 
a weak  China,  whatever  reforms  she 
may  attempt.  And  the  marked  ten- 
dency of  the  times  is  to  replace  her  old 
religions  and  superstitions  by  (1)  a 
thoughtless  materialism  for  the  popu- 
lace, and  (2)  a thought-out  materialism 
for  her  scholars,  who  read  Western 
philosophy  with  far  more  avidity  than 
our  Western  students  do. 

3.  There  is  no  non-Chinese  religion 
besieging  China  in  competition  with 
Christianity.  A transient  attempt  was 
made  to  introduce  Japanese  Buddhism, 
but,  as  a prominent  Japanese,  learned 

9* 


(3)  The  Need 
for  Prayer. 


2 66  The  Call  of  Cathay 

in  Buddhist  lore,  Mr.  Maeda  Gun,  wrote 
in  the  Shinkoron,  the  leading  Buddhist 
organ  of  his  eountry  : 

“ Looking  at  the  whole  Buddhist  world,  it  cannot 
be  said  that  there  is  any  sect  or  school  which  is 
sufficiently  powerful  to  mould  the  belief  and  comfort 
the  hearts  of  the  rising  generation  ; and  as  for 
Buddhism  undertaking  to  reform  society,  nobody 
thinks  it  possible.  To  the  higher  cravings  of  mankind 
Buddhism  makes  no  response.  It  is  a religion  only 
in  name  ; all  its  significance  has  disappeared.”  (From 
a Japanese  newspaper  in  the  spring  of  1906.) 


Here,*  then,  is  our  responsibility  as 
Christians,  to  spread  true,  dynamic 
Christianity  throughout  the  provinces 
of  China.  But  it  must  be  spiritual  and 
prayerful  Christianity.  It  must  be 
poured  into  China  ehiefly  by  intereessory 
missionaries  residing  in  China  and  at 
home.  Whatever  our  stage  of  enlighten- 
ment or  otherwise  as  regards  the  philo- 
sophy of  prayer,  we  may  most  surely 
believe  the  axiomatie  truth  that  every 
whole-souled  fprayer  for  China  imports 
moral  and  spiritual  force  into  China. 
Some  of  us  in  China  have  felt  the  prayer- 
force  from  the  home-land  thrilling 
through  us  at  the  moment  that  prayer 


New  China  and  its  Problems  267 

(as  we  found  afterwards)  was  offered 
for  us.  And  in  this  critical  time  in 
the  history  of  a quarter  of  the  race  it 
is  ours,  not  so  much  to  multiply  funds 
and  missionaries  indefinitely  (there  are 
limits  to  our  powers  in  both  respects), 
as,  while  giving  all  we  can,  and  sending 
all  we  can,  to  multiply  our  prayer-forces 
indefinitely,  thus  pouring  into  the  heart 
of  China  the  very  force  which  will  be 
her  salvation,  socially,  politically,  mor- 
ally, and  spiritually. 

And  as  we  do  this  there  is  one  grand 
encouragement  that  must  be  quoted. 
China  may  look  askance  at  foreign 
missionaries  still ; the  term  ‘‘  religious 
society  ” (for  Church)  may  have  sinister 
ideas  attaching  to  it.  More  upheavals 
may  perchance  follow  that  of  Changsha. 
But  in  New  China  there  is  one  name 
never  quoted  without  respect,  and 
seldom  without  reverence.  The  red 
cross  has  been  adopted  as  the  sign  and 
symbol  of  infinite  benevolence,  to  friend 
and  foe  alike.  And  the  Name  that 
gives  the  red  cross  its  significance  is 
becoming  a hallowed  Name  in  China. 
Far  better,  if  needs  must  be,  that  New 


2 68  The  Call  of  Cathay 

China  should  seek  to  exelude  the 
foreigner,  and  take  that  Name  to  her 
heart,  than  that  the  West  should  gain 
all  it  seeks  from  China,  and  that  Name 
be  seouted  and  excluded.  For,  look 
you,  the  first  petition  of  the  Lord’s 
Prayer  is  being  fulfilled  more  and  more 
daily  ; and  will  not  the  second  petition 
be  most  surely  fulfilled  in  its  wake, 
as  we  learn  to  pray  that  prayer  with 
‘‘  importunity,”  and  that  is  with  dogged 
^persistency,  even  as  we  have  been  taught 
by  Him  who  teaches  to  pray  ? 

ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  realise  the  significance 
of  China’s  awakening. 

1.  What  have  been  the  chief  factors  in  the  awaken- 
ing of  China  ? 

2.  Enumerate  the  reforms  of  the  past  ten  years. 

3.  What  effect  do  you  think  the  changes  of  recent 
years  will  have  on  missionary  w^ork  ? 

4.  What  features  of  the  present  situation  give 
cause  for  anxiet3^  ? 

REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

Broomhaul,  M. — Present-day  Conditions  in  China. 
Cecil,  Lord  W.  G. — Changing  China. 

Brown,  A.  J. — New  Forces  in  Old  China. 

CoRNABY,  W.  A. — China  Under  the  Searchlight. 


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NEEDY  CHINA. 


[p.  269 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE  CALL  OF  THE  HOUR 

It  was  said  of  Demosthenes,  in  his  Facts  as  Argu^ 

famous  orations  for  the  preservation 

of  the  freedom  of  Greeee,  “ His  faets 

are  his  arguments.”  And  the  faets 

accumulated  in  the  foregoing  pages 

surely  constitute  a powerful  argument 

and  call  for  prayerful  consecration,  and 

for  such  action  in  the  matter  of  China’s 

future  as  may  come  within  the  scope 

of  those  energies  which  God  will  give 

us  through  our  prayer  and  supplication. 

We  have  seen  China  in  glimpses,  as  Lack  of  Moral 
regards  the  broad  facts  of  her  past  and 
present  : her  moral  convictions,  and 
her  lack  of  moral  power  to  carry  them 
into  action  : her  Confucianists  abandon- 
ing Confucian  probity  on  gaining  office 
as  mandarins  ; her  masses  so  much 
environed  and  invested  with  squalor  of 
thought.  We  have  noted  her  religion — ■ 

269 


Lack  of  Real 
Religion. 


270  The  Call  of  Cathay 

or  rather,  except  in  certain  parts,  her 
lack  of  it : her  stated  prayer  to  God  but 
twice  a year,  in  the  person  of  her  em- 
peror ; her  populace  employing,  not  wor- 
shipping, their  gods — employing  them 
to  bring  just  the  “ three  abundances,” 
Riches,  Sons,  Long  Life,  and  mostly 
feeling  their  uselessness,  for  the  first 
and  third  items  at  any  rate  ; her 
Buddhism  (originally  a religion  of  celi- 
bacy) being  retained  only  as  a means 
toward  the  gaining  of  male  offspring, 
and  as  a path  to  a Western  Paradise 
of  which  Gautama  never  dreamed  ; her 
Taoism  (originally  a philosophy  of  vege- 
table life  applied  to  humanity)  being 
retained  only  as  a means  to  good  luck, 
or  for  the  deceased  ones  departing  to 
a nine-storied,  dragon-guarded  heaven, 
in  which  no  one  believes.  And,  beyond 
this,  no  spiritual  religion  dealing  with 
the  conscience  and  character — only  a 
faded  memory  of  one  now  more  than 
three  millenniums  out  of  date  shut  up 
as  a populace  to  unthinking  materi- 
alism. These^^facts  are  arguments  that 
shout  in  our  ears. 

Then,  the  total  change  round  of  her 


The  Call  of  the  Hour 


271 


scholars  and  students  : previous  to  National  and 
1898  ever  asking,  “ Was  it  so  of  old  ? ” Sei?sS!ing. 
but  since  then  and  always,  “Is  it 
up  to  date  ? ” Her  endeavours  to  do 
in  a moment  for  her  land  what  had 
centuries  of  unconscious  preparation 
behind  it  in  Japan,  and  what  had  more 
centuries  of  conscious,  strenuous  aspira- 
tion behind  it  in  Europe  ; her  own 
patriotism  being  so  largely  place-seek- 
ing, in  contrast  to  the  “ self-denying 
• ordinance  ” of  the  Young  Turks,  who 
voted  themselves  non-candidates  for 
parliament  and  the  like.  Her  absorp- 
tion of  what  is  deemed  most  advanced 
in  science  and  philosophy — Young 
China’s  chosen  philosophers  being  Rous- 
seau and  Mazzini,  and  her  philosophical 
scientists  being  Spencer  and  Huxley, 
with  Tom  Paine  as  an  ideal  liberator 
from  all  religious  restraint.  For  such 
household  words  have  these  four  names, 
Rousseau,  Spencer,  Huxley,  Paine,  be- 
come among  the  new  generation,  that 
they  occurred  in  a written  eulogy  pre- 
sented to  a Christian  lecturer  on  Nation- 
al Reform,  on  his  leaving  for  home,  he 
being  likened  to  them  all  ! The  whole 


The 

Possibilities  of 

China^s 

Children, 


272  The  Call  of  Cathay 

trend  of  the  times  is  towards  an  aban- 
donment of  China’s  old  Sages,  and  their 
exhortations  to  “ accord  with  Heaven,” 
for  a thought-out  materialism  which 
knows  no  Heavenly  Power  above.  These 
facts  are  arguments  that  must  drive 
us  to  our  knees.  We  can  but  resolve 
to  import  into  China  the  spiritual  con- 
ceptions and  the  moral  prayer-force  that 
she  needs  so  sorely. 

Then,  the  possibilities  of  the  rising 
generation  in  China  for  evil  or  for  good.* 
Those  millions  of  boys  and  myriads  of 
girls,  trudging  along,  or  chasing  each 
other  through  the  streets  and  alleys 
with  their  pendant  shop-signs  and 
their  unthinkable  odours — with  shining 
morning  faces,  and  bundles  of  books, 
wrapped  in  blue  cloth,  tucked  under 
their  arms,  as  they  go  to  school  : books 
on  our  arithmetic,  the  world’s  geography, 
our  sciences  in  their  rudiments,  and. 
accounts  of  various  nations,  as  well  as 
Chinese  lesson-books.  These  children, 
bright,  interesting,  lovable  (see,  they 
return  our  smiles  with  interest),  it  is 
possible  for  them  to  grow  up  sneering 
at  idols  and  superstitions,  but  with 


273 


The  Call  of  the  Hour 

nothing  to  take  their  plaee — no  worship 
whatever  ; it  is  possible  for  them  to  per- 
suade themselves,  as  Young  China  has 
mostly  persuaded  herself,  that  foreign 
diplomaey  is  all  “ poisonous  intrigue  ” ; 
to  drop  the  old  ery  of  ‘‘  oeean  demon  ” 
for  deep -muttered  animosities  in  whieh 
Japan  in  the  east,  Russia  on  the  north, 
and  England,  Germany,  Franee,  and 
America  figure  as  many-headed  monsters 
to  be  opposed  tooth  and  nail,  and  their 
representatives  swept  clean  from  the 
land,  if  a gigantic  militarism  and  a 
rampant  Boxerism  can  do  it.  In  a 
word,  it  is  possible,  quite  possible,  for 
them  to  grow  up  antagonists  of  God 
and  of  humanity,  self-destroying  in 
the  bitter  end.  And  are  these  things, 
forsooth,  to  happen,  my  brothers,  my 
sisters  ? 

It  is  possible,  on  the  other  hand, 
for  them  in  years  to  come  to  grasp 
the  true  teaching  of  history,  catching 
a glimpse  of  the  views  of  Carlyle,  when 
he  called  history  “ a mighty  drama, 
enacted  on  the  theatre  of  infinitude, 
with  suns  for  lamps,  and  eternity  for 
a background  ; whose  author  is  God, 


The  Future 
Makers  of 
China's  Homef< 


274  The  Call  of  Cathay 

and  whose  purport  and  thousand-fold 
moral  leads  up  to  the  ‘ dark  with  exeess 
of  light  ’ of  the  Throne  of  God.”  It 
is  possible  for  them  to  learn  that  wrong- 
doing in  a nation  has  its  retribution  in 
this  world  at  last  ; that  (as  in  the  pre- 
vious century)  infidelity  to  treaty-bonds 
must  ever  lead  to  national  loss  ; that 
an  undue  resistance  of  the  inevitable 
inflow  of  non-political  merchant  and 
missionary  residents  must  lead  to  com- 
plications of  an  acute  political  order  ; 
that  blind  opposition  to  pacific  inter- 
course with  other  nations  must  tend 
to  the  employment  of  unpacific  methods 
by  those  nations.  It  is  possible  for 
them  to  grasp  the  truth  of  a world- 
wide brotherhood  under  a Divine  Father ; 
a grand,  common  hope  for  humanity 
through  a Divine  Redeemer  ; and  the 
vast  possibilities  of  rightness  and  good- 
ness, and  mutual  harmony  also,  through 
that  mighty  Spirit  Whose  operation  is 
through  the  prayers  of  the  faithful. 

There  they  go,  those  boys  and  girls, 
dawdling  or  tripping  along,  half  sedately, 
yet  with  eyes  full  of  mirth  and  mischief 
(bless  them  !)  chatting  and  chaffing ; 


Photo  &y]  [!('.  A.  CoriHihi/.  J‘hoto  ?;//]  [IK.  A.  Coniahij. 

A SCHOOLGlRIi  WHO  BECAME  A TRAINED  NURSE.  A SCHOOLBOY  WHO  BECAME  A COLLEGE  TUTOR. 


s 


The  Call  of  the  Hour  275 

all  unconscious  that  they  are  the  future 
makers  of  China’s  homes,  China’s  public 
opinion,  China’s  policy,  China’s  history 
— the  history  of  a quarter  of  the  race, 
and  therefore  a mighty  factor  in  the 
history  of  the  world  at  large  ! Or, 
taking  a yet  wider  range  of  view,  there 
they  go,  those  wondrous  immortals, 
who,  having  blessed  or  cursed  the  world 
with  their  presence,  will  find  their  des- 
tiny yonder,  in  regions  and  conditions 
blessed  or  cursed. 

Those  children  ! Those  children  ! Momentous 
What  will  they  be  in  two  or  three  de- 
cades  ? And  what  will  they  he  in  two 
or  three  centuries  ? They  will  be  some- 
thing, somewhere.  What  is  it  to  be, 
and  where  ? 

What  is  to  be  their  relation  to  hu- 
manity, to  God,  to  eternity  ? Are  they 
to  grow  up  not  knowing,  and  not  caring 
to  know,  that  the  earth  is  the  Lord’s, 
and  that  this  very  earth  has  felt  the 
impress  of  One  Child’s  feet,  one  Young 
Man’s  “ loveliness  of  perfect  deeds  ” ? 

That  on  this  earth  was  once  erected  a 
cross,  whereon  that  Young  Man  was 
nailed — not  as  a Teacher  Whose  teaching 


European 
Influence  for 
Good  or  Evil» 


276  The  Call  of  Cathay 

had  failed  ; not  as  a mere  vietim  of 
slanderous  aecusation  ; not  as  a mere 
hero  and  martyr  to  the  Truth,  but  as 
the  Divine  Sharer  of  the  griefs  and 
sorrows  of  the  raee,  the  Divine  Bearer 
of  the  sin  and  shame  of  the  whole  human 
family,  in  all  elimes  and  all  ages  ? Or, 
hearing  this  message  delivered  with 
little  prayer-force,  and  backed  by  little 
prayer-force  from  afar,  are  they  to 
deem  it  an  ordinary  tale  of  merely 
historic  interest,  but  with  no  pungency 
of  appeal  to  them,  of  no  value  to  their 
lives,  of  no  use  to  China,  and  so  become 
neglecters,  despisers,  rejecters,  of  China’s 
one  hope  and  their  own  only  Saviour  ? 
These  questions  are  forced  upon  us,  until 
surely  they  burn  within,  demanding 
an  answer. 

Then,  some  of  these  bright  boys  and 
girls  in  future  years  will  live  in  Treaty 
Ports  among  Westerns  in  China  ; and 
some  of  the  brightest  of  them  will  come 
to  Europe  and  America,  some  to  England, 
to  reside  and  study,  with  open  eyes, 
considering  the  sum-total  of  what  they 
see,  and  pondering  it  over.  What  im- 
pressions are  to  be  the  deepest  received? 


277 


The  Call  of  the  Hour 

We  talk  of  home  and  foreign  mis- coin  the 
sions,  in  this  world  of  dwindling  dis- 
tances,  in  these  days  of  rapid  transit 
over  land  and  sea,  when  no  part  of 
Europe  is  more  than  two  or  three  days’ 
distant ; when  three  weeks  will  take 
us  to  any  part  of  India,  and  a fortnight 
will  land  us  in  the  heart  of  China,  and 
when  every  ocean-steamer  and  every 
trans-Siberian  train  is  taking  what  we 
have  done-- or  what  we  have  failed  to 
do — with  our  home  missions  and  all 
our  thickly  clustered  churches  and 
chapels,  and  pouring  it  into  those  ports 
and  cities,  living  units  of  the  whole,  of 
aggressive  energy  and  potent  influence  : 
unconscious  missionaries,  all  of  them, 
from  above  or  from  below.  Some  of 
them  stand  erect,  as  unofficial  mission- 
aries of  righteousness  and  godliness  ; and 
some  as  emissaries  of  added  depravity, 
who  “ hear  the  East  a-calling,”  and  re- 
gard it  as  a fine  place  because  “ there 
ain’t  no  Ten  Commandments,”  except 
that  one  about  killing  ! They  go  East 
to  have  “ a good  time  ” at  the  expense 
of  China’s  old-time  sobriety,  and  of  what 
she  holds  in  her  conscience,  if  not  in 


(2)  In  Western 
Lands* 


278  The  Call  of  Cathay 

her  practice,  as  stern  moral  principle. 
And  the  majority  who  arrive  out  East 
would  themselves  acknowledge  that, 
without  being  vicious,  thay  have  left 
their  mother’s  religion  behind  them, 
somewhere  where  Pharaoh’s  hosts  dis- 
appeared of  old,  now  known  as  the 
Suez  Canal.  Oh  ! home  missions  are 
foreign  mdssions  nowadays.  We  must 
win  our  own  families  for  God,  lest  some 
member  of  the  family,  going  abroad, 
should  become  an  effectual  barrier 
against  the  Chinese  coming  to  God. 

What  are  to  be  the  deepest  impres- 
sions produced  on  the  Chinese  students 
residing  in  our  home-land — from  the  vast 
majority  that  are  worshipless,  and  the 
large  number  in  our  Churches  who 
confess  never  to  bow  the  knee  for  half 
an  hour’s  pleading  with  God  in  their 
homes  ? What  impressions  will  linger, 
from  a Church  christened  “ Christianity 
in  earnest,”  if  they  visit  homes  where 
they  are  asked  (as  has  been  asked) 
“ Was  not  Confucius  more  scholarly 
than  Jesus  ? ” or  “ Do  you  not  think, 
after  all,  that  Buddhism  is  the  religion 
most  adapted  for  the  Far  East  ? ” What 


The  Call  of  the  Hour  279 

impressions  will  linger  from  contact 
with  Christians  too  keen  on  whist- 
drives,  and  even  bridge  parties,  to 
attend  once  a year  a “ dull  old  mission- 
ary meeting,  with  some  one  or  other 
from  China  there  ” ? 

On  a Yangtse  steamer  a genial 
Chinese  gentleman,  who  had  lived  in 
Shanghai  in  business  intercourse  with 
Europeans,  once  remarked  to  a mis- 
sionary in  all  innocence  : “ What 

numbers  of  my  countrymen  are  becoming 
Christians  everywhere  ! Do  any  of  your 
honourable  countrymen  really  follow 
Jesus  ? ” It  was  easy  to  answer  “ Yes,” 
but  with  a big  lump  in  the  throat,  as 
that  passage  of  Scripture  was  instantly 
recalled  : “ He  came  to  His  own,  and 

His  own  received  Him  not.”  And  that 
other  passage,  which  ought  never  to  have 
been  true,  and  which  must  not,  in  God’s 
name,  continue  to  be  true  of  the  great 
majority  of  our  countrymen  : “ The 

Son  of  Man  hath  not  where  to  lay  His 
head  ” — that  is  to  say.  His  heart. 

Again,  in  a rowdy  saloon  of  a P.  and 
O.  liner  crossing  the  Indian  Ocean, 
where  not  a few  were  the  worse  for 


A Call  to 
Prayer, 


280  The  Call  of  Cathay 

whisky,  and  were  shouting  and  singing, 
a distinguished  Japanese  professor  said 
to  the  same  missionary  : “I  have  been 
studying  European  religion  in  Germany, 
and  other  continental  lands,  to  report 
to  my  Government.  My  stay  in  Eng- 
land was  brief.  Please,  what  do  you 
think  of  the  outlook  of  Christianity 
there  ? ” A question  hard  to  answer 
at  that  uncomfortable  moment.  The 
words  would  only  come  : “ Not  all  dark, 
I assure  you.” 

Once  more,  a distinguished  Welsh 
missionary,  of  broadest  sympathies, 
was  conversing  with  a Roman  Catholic 
bishop  in  Japan,  and  put  the  question  : 
“ When,  think  you,  will  the  Ear  East 
* be  converted  ? ” “ When  the  West  is,” 
was  the  far-reaching  reply. 

Dear  friend,  the  reader  of  these  words, 
do  not  these  things  form  a strong  plea, 
pouring  like  some  molten  metal  into 
your  soul,  as  into  the  soul  of  the  writer, 
to  be  at  any  rate  one  in  a great  crusade 
against  godlessness,  worldliness,  prayer- 
lessness,  within — yes,  within  ! — and 
around  ^ our  home  Churches  ? And  if 
you  hear  a sermon  from  which  the  word 


The  Call  of  the  Hour 


281 


“ prayer  ” is  omitted,  pray  for  your 
minister.  If  you  attend  a serviee  where 
there  is  no  large,  pleading  prayer  offered 
for  humanity,  beyond  the  little  eompany 
present,  pray  for  your  minister  ! It  is 
only  a lapse  of  memory  ; his  heart  is 
right.  But  pray  him  into  deep  eon- 
viction  as  to  the  paramount  need  of 
prayerful  ness  ; pray  him  into  broad, 
vivid  coneeptions  of  the  imperative 
yearning  that  fills  Christ’s  infinite  heart, 
and  of  the  need  of  Christ  among  earth’s 
millions,  so  that  he  may  ever  put  the 
Kingdom  of  Christ  first,  and  not  just 
the  peace  and  comfort  and  blessedness 
of  those  present  and  the  circles  of 
friends  that  they  represent. 

“ I will  run  in  the  way  of  Thy  com- 
mandments, when  Thou  shalt  enlarge 
my  heart  ” ; and  as  George  Fox,  founder 
of  the  Society  of  Friends,  said  : “ I 

prayed  the  Lord  that  He  would  baptise 
my  heart  into  a sense  of  the  conditions 
and  needs  of  all  men,” — a holy  baptism, 
that,  which  ministers  and  ministered- 
to  need  to  have  administered  to  them 
daily  : first,  the  conditions  and  needs 
of  those  in  our  own  femilies ; then  our 


282 


Have  the 
Chinese  a Ca^ 
pacity  for 
Religion  ? 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

near  neighbours,  our  fellow  eitizens  as 
a whole,  our  nation  at  large,  in  all  those 
things  revealed  by  the  daily  newspapers  ; 
and  then,  country  by  country,  the  whole 
world  ; until  the  sense  of  those  needs 
makes  us  take  up  our  abode  at  the  Mercy- 
seat,  as  workers  together  with  Him 
through  Whose  Spirit  of  Yearning  we 
offer  our  prayers. 

One  consideration  may  perhaps  haunt 
us,  and  tend  to  lower  the  standard  of 
our  faith  in  prayer  for  the  Chinese,  and 
that  is  the  fact  that  they  as  a nation 
have  not  shown  any  strong  proclivities 
for  spiritual  religion  through  the  cen- 
turies. “ Is  there  not  as  little  religion  in 
the  average  Chinaman  as  there  is  music  ? 
Would  you  not  place  their  religious 
capacities  upon  a level,  roughly  speaking, 
with  their  capacity  for  music,  in  our 
sense  of  the  word  ? ” may  be  asked 
us.  And  the  reply  would  be  : “ Yes, 

perhaps  that  is  not  an  extravagant 
comparison.  Cymbal-clangings,  gong- 
bangings,  five  notes  on  a fiddle,  flute- 
shriekings,  and  hautboy-wailings  in 
runic  patterns  on  those  five  notes — 
meagre,  rudimentary,  soulless  : perhaps 


A CHINESE  LADY. 


(Winter  costume,  old  style.) 


[p.  283 


The  Call  ol  the  Hour  283 

their  average  religious  capaeities  are 
almost  on  such  a plane  as  this.  But 
still,  they  are  capacities  not  incapable 
of  culture.  An  average  congregation 
learns  to  sing  Western  tunes  correctly 
in  a few  years.  The  brass  bands  of 
modernised  China  are  not  inharmonious. 
And  as  to  Chinese  girl-students,  one 
has  heard  Ascher’s  “ Mazurka  des  Train- 
eux  ” rendered  with  spirit  as  a piano 
trio,  Durand’s  “ Second  Mazurka  ” as 
a piano  solo,  Moszkowski’s  “ Valse 
Brilliante  ” as  a piano  quartette,  by 
Chinese  maidens  most  excellently  ; and 
even  one  of  the  piano  parts  (an  American 
lady  taking  the  other  piano)  in  the  ex- 
ceedingly intricate  “ Danse  Macabre  ” 
by  Saint-Saens.  And,  to  come  to  a 
more  familar  piece,  never  have  I been 
so  thrilled  by  Handel’s  ‘‘  Hallelujah 
Chorus  ” as  when  three  of  the  parts 
were  taken  by  a whole  school  of  Chinese 
girls,  two  accompanying  on  the  piano, 
and  the  visitor  putting  in  the  bass. 
And  the  religious  faculties,  under  divine 
grace,  have,  in  not  a few  instances, 
developed  to  a corresponding  degree. 
Some  in  our  churches  in  China  have 


284  The  Call  of  Cathay 

far  exceeded  the  average  church- 
member  at  home  when  once  a passion 
for  prayer  has  seized  them.  Theirs 
is  the  “ simple  life  ” with  great  faculties 
for  concentration,  when  once  those 
faculties  have  been  aroused.  There  is 
hope  for  the  average  man  and  woman 
of  China,  hope  of  their  gaining  a true 
spiritual  life,  if  a rudimentary  one,  and 
all  hope  for  the  children  of  China  who 
come  under  the  spell  of  the  Crucified. 

“ But  can  you  really  hope  for  any- 
thing on  a large  scale  in  a land  so  subject 
to  riotous  outbreaks,  the  burning  of 
mission  houses  and  killing  of  mission- 
aries, without  any  provocation  what- 
ever ? ” It  is  a fair  question,  and  one 
to  be  considered.  Yet,  let  it  be  noted 
that  no  riot  has  occurred  without  what, 
to  the  mind  of  the  mob,  was  a sore  pro- 
vocation ; and  further,  that  riots,  other 
than  passing  excitements,  have  needed 
much  preparation,  much  “ working-up,” 
on  the  part,  in  years  past,  of  officials 
who  had  secret  orders  to  drive  out  the 
foreigner,  or,  in  riots  since  1900,  from 
the  gentry  of  the  cities  in  which  the 
riots  have  occurred. 


The  Call  of  the  Hour  285 

We  might  go  farther  than  this,  and 
pluek  a larger  faith  in  our  prayings 
from  the  very  riots  themselves.  For 
what  is  a riot  but  Penteeost  reversed  ? 

Is  it  not  a heart-in-heart  combination, 
under  the  Spirit  of  Hatred,  wherein 
every  one  has  the  “ tongue  of  fire  ” to 
arouse  to  a common  cause — a “ tongue 
set  on  fire  of  hell  ” ? And  those  who 
are  capable  of  the  incitement  and  in- 
dwelling of  the  Spirit  of  Hate  and 
Destruction,  capable  of  receiving  and 
spreading  that  fire  from  hell,  may  indeed 
become  capable  of  the  incitement  and 
indwelling  of  the  Spirit  of  Love  and 
Salvation,  capable  of  receiving  and 
spreading  the  fire  from  heaven. 

This  has  been  proven  in  the  revivals 
that  broke  out  in  China  in  1908~9. 

The  story  has  been  told,  as  regards 
Hankow,  by  J.  Sydney  Helps  : 

“ Some  two  years  ago  the  Far  Eastern  Revival  The  Revival  in 
began  in  India  ; then  in  Korea,  where  the  Christian  K^orea, 

Church  was  shaken  as  by  a mighty  wind.  Those 
who  saw  this  wondrous  work  spread  the  tidings 
amongst  the  Manchurian  Churches, ^ and  at  once 


^ It  is  well  to  explain  that  Ma-nchuria  is  not  in- 
habited b}'  Manchus,  as  might  be  supposed.  On  the 


286 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

The  Revival  in  the  Spirit  descended  into  their  midst.  Church  after 
Manchuria,  Church  was  visited  with  such  a revival  that  the 
story  of  it  {Times  of  Refreshing  in  Manchuria)  reads 
like  a new  chapter  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  The 
worker  most  used  of  God  in  this  revival  was  the 
Rev.  W.  Goforth,  of  the  Canadian  Presbyterian 
Mission,  and  he  was  set  apart  by  that  Mission  to 
conduct  special  services  in  other  parts  of  the 
empire. 

The  Revival  in  “He  has  just  concluded  five  days’  meetings  in  th« 
Central  China,  jjankow  Wesleyan  Church.  He  is  spending  some 
three  weeks  in  these  three  cities,  and  came  to  us 
from  Wuchang  and  Hanyang.  In  both  cities  the 
gatherings  have  been  large,  and  the  results  such  as 
had  never  been  seen  in  these  parts. 

“ There  is  nothing  sensational  about  Mr.  Goforth’s 
methods.  In  fact,  it  might  not  be  incorrect  to  say 
that  he  has  no  methods.  And  herein  lies  the  secret 
of  the  wonderful  movement — all  is  left  to  the  Spirit 
of  God.  There  is  no  ‘ inquiry  room,’  and  yet  men 
have  been  literally  swept  into  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

“ Let  us  look  in  at  one  of  the  meetings.  It  begins 
at  10.30,  and  goes  on  till  one  o’clock  or  later.  What 
is  drawing  these  crowds  thus  day  after  day  ? Here 
comes  the  choir  : the  blind  boys  from  the  David 
Hill  School.  They  squeeze  themselves  on  to  the 
rostrum,  the  blind  organist  seats  himself,  and,  while 
the  stewards  are  trying  to  make  six  people  occujDy 
the  space  of  four,  they  strike  up  a rousing  hymn. 

conquest  of  China  by  the  Manchus  in  1644  (they 
were  so  few  in  number  that  they  had  to  impose  their 
dress  on  the  whole  male  j^opulation,  so  that  the 
nation  miglit  not  realise  their  fewness),  they  settled 
in  China  itself,  leaving  the  Chinese  to  colonise  Man- 
churia- 


The  Call  of  the  Hour  287 

In  a moment  there  is  a volume  of  sound  from  the 
whole  company,  to  the  words  : 

‘ O happy  day  that  fixed  my  choice.’ 

Hymn  follows  hymn  till  the  bell  rings,  and  the  mis- 
sioner  talces  his  place.  Another  hymn  ; and  a blind 
boy,  with  his  finger  tracing  the  raised  dots  (of  the 
adapted  Braille  system),  reads  expressively  a portion 
of  God’s  Word.  Then  ‘ Let  some  who  feel  the 
Spirit  is  leading  them  engage  in  prayer.’ 

“ There  is  a momentary  hush.  Then  a man  begins. 
And  where  are  the  old  stereotyped  expressions  ? 
He  has  dropped  all  his  old  formulse.  He  is  under 
the  influence  of  a new  power.  Instead  of  the  ‘ we  ’ 
or  ‘ they,’  it  is  the  ‘ I ’ confessing  his  sins  and 
pleading  for  pardon.  He  is  a leading  man  in  the 
Church,  yet  is  he  broken  down  before  God,  and  before 
God  and  his  brethren  he  is  confessing  to  lukewarm- 
ness, slackness  in  j^rayer,  or  love  of  money.  His 
voice  falters,  his  usual  fluency  has  disappeared, 
he  stammers,  the  tears  stream  dovm  his  face.  The 
whole  company  is  moved,  and  groans  and  low  cries 
fill  the  place.  God  is  here,  God  as  a refining  fire. 
It  is  sin,  not  sentiment,  that  is  causing  those  tears. 

“ He  ceases.  A girl’s  voice  is  heard,  low  at  first, 
then  clearer.  Then,  in  a moment,  she  too  is  shaken 
by  the  revealing  Spirit,  and  calls  on  God  for  for- 
giveness. Shaken  with  sobs,  and  hardly  able  to 
utter  her  confession,  she  tells  God  how,  as  a hospital 
nurse,  she  has  yielded  to  temper,  has  lost  oppor- 
tunities of  witnessing  for  God,  has  told  lies,  and  even 
taken  some  things  that  were  not  her  ovni.  And  as 
the  girl  sobs  out  her  prayer,  the  whole  congregation 
weeps  with  her,  and  the  sound  is  as  a strong  wind 
in  a forest. 

“ ‘ O God,’  cries  one,  ‘ Thou  art  this  day  revealing 


288 


The  Call  of  Cathay 

sin  in  me  that  I never  knew  to  be  sin  before.’  Con- 
viction and  confession  of  sin,  these  are  the  leading 
notes  of  it  all.  And  why  ? The  Spirit  of  God  is  here. 

“ After  several  such  prayers  we  sing  again,  and  the 
preacher  steps  forward.  He  announces  his  text  : 

‘ Roll  away  the  stone.’  He  prays  for  a moment, 
and  then  for  nearly  an  hour  pleads  with  the  hearers 
to  remove  from  their  lives  the  stones,  and  yield  to 
the  Resurrection  power.  One  can  feel  that  the  words 
are  going  home.  There  is  a solemn  hush  as  the 
sword  of  the  Spirit  does  its  work — God’s  work — in 
those  hearts. 

“The  address  is  finished;  no  hymn,  but  prayer 
again.  And  now  one  of  our  best  Chinese  preachers 
stands  up.  What  has  he  to  confess  ? ‘ Lord,  I 

have  often  exhorted  others  to  give  liberally  to  the 
Church,  but.  Lord,  I myself  am  the  stumbling- 
block.  I see  it  now.  Forgive  me,  and  forbid  that 
my  sin  should  hinder  others.  From  to-day  I promise 
to  give  Thee  a tenth  of  all  I have.’  Is  it  any  wonder 
that  he  got  blessed  ? 

“ Yonder  is  a man  who  has  stood  up  several  times 
to  pray,  but  has  been  mastered  by  emotion.  It  is 
awful  to  see  his  agony,  as  with  sobs  and  loud  cries 
he  pours  out  his  confession  before  God  : ‘ I have 

been  a colporteur.  I have  been  trusted  by  the 
missionaries.  I have  deceived  them  again  and 
again.  I have  told  them  lies.  I have  been  dilator^' 
in  my  work.  Yes,  I must,  I will  confess  ’ — visibly 
fighting  the  devil — ‘ I must  confess  all.  Lord, 
once  the  missionary  gave  me  ten  thousand  cash,  and 
I declared,  when  we  took  accounts,  that  he  had  only 
given  me  one.  Lord,  save  me  ! ’ And  just  then 
the  leader  gives  out  : 


‘ Just  as  I am,  without  one  plea,’ 


The  Call  of  the  Hour 


289 

and  with  the  words,  no  less  beautiful  in  Chinese, 
comes  peace  to  many  a heart.  Then,  after  more 
prayers,  the  meeting  closes. 

“ Have  all  the  prayers  been  like  these  ? Prac- 
tically so,  if  not  all  so  intense.  And  the  few  times 
that  a self-righteous  man  has  prayed  in  the  meetings, 
a prayer  with  no  grace  and  grip,  it  has  been  as  grave 
in  the  teeth  of  the  rest. 

“ The  whole  Church  has  been  swept.  The  blind 
boys,  the  girl-nurses  in  the  Women’s  Hospital,  and 
many  others  have  been  broken  down  by  the  Spirit’s 
power.  Even  some  little  ones  in  the  day  schools 
have  come  confessing  their  sins,  and  pleading  for 
pardon.  What  has  done  it  all  ? ‘ Lord,’  prayed 

the  blind  organist  in  a touching  prayer,  ‘ I never 
knew  till  yesterday  the  real  meaning  of  the  Cross 
of  Jesus.’  It  has  been  the  Spirit  of  God  exalting 
the  Crucified  Saviour. 

“ In  these  meetings  many  old  things  have  died, 
and  many  new  things  have  been  born.  Not  the 
least  new  gift  to  us  here  is  the  new  hope  for  our 
Church,  and  for  China  at  large,  for  we  have  seen  that 
even  the  cold  and  materialistic  can  be  set  on  fire 
by  God.” 

Yes,  as  in  a sacred  riot,  if  the  term 
be  allowed,  where  all  apathy  becomes 
a blaze  of  elemental  passion  ; an  or- 
ganised riot  against  all  “ foreign  devilry” 
of  sin  lurking  within  the  gates. 

“ The  town  of  Mansoul  did  now  thoroughly  seek 
the  destruction  and  ruin  of  all  remaining  DiaboHans 
that  abode  in  the  walls,  and  in  the  dens  that  they 
had  in  the  town  of  Mansoul.” 


10 


1^0  The  Call  of  Cathay 

And  then  flashed  out  the  Presence — of 
Pentecost  : 

“For  now  there  was  music  and  dancing  throughout 
the  whole  town  of  Mansoul,  and  that  because  their 
Prince  had  granted  to  them  His  Presence,  and  the 
light  of  His  countenance ; the  bells  also  did  ring, 
and  the  sun  shone  comfortably  for  a great  while 
together.” 

But  the  results  of  revivals  need  to 
be  written  up,  say,  a year  after,  rather 
than  at  the  time,  if  we  are  to  estimate 
. their  permanent  dynamic  value.  What 
were  the  results  of  these  China  revivals 
after  the  lapse  of  months,  some  will  ask? 
Results  of  the  The  answer  need  not  be  given  in 
Revival.  statistics  of  added  membership,  though 

flgures  could  be  given,  but  in  terms  of 
practical  philosophy.  The  result  after 
the  revival  was  that  (1)  those  who 
had  learned  to  live  the  prayer-life  re- 
tained a high-tone  spirituality  in  their 
everyday  character  and  in  their  wit- 
ness-bearing for  Christ ; (2)  those  who 
failed  to  give  the  Lord  half  an  hour  of 
their  day  for  intercession  slipped  back 
to  the  dead-levels  where  they  were 
before  ; while  some  few  (3),  imagining 
themselves  uplifted  above  the  necessity 


291 


The  Call  of  the  Hour 

of  watchfulness,  fell  into  envious  imagin- 
ings, and  sneerings  at  others — yes,  and 
into  still  more  reprehensible  forms 
of  evil.  And  has  not  this  been  the 
case  in  all  lands  after  a revival  ? The 
proportions  of  the  three  classes  have 
differed,  that  is  all.  And  were  the 
whole  membership  of  a given  church 
to  be  all  comprised  under  the  first 
class,  would  there  be  any  great  need 
for  special  services  such  as  these  ? 
Would  not  the  ordinary  services  inevi- 
tably become  special  ? That  was  the 
case  in  one  church  at  home,  where  the 
proportion  of  intercessory  members  was 
high,  and  figures  (if  figures  be  needed) 
show  that  that  Methodist  circuit  once 
gained  well-nigh  three  hundred  mem- 
bers in  the  space  of  three  years. 

Moreover,  such  powers  of  concentra- 
tion lurk  in  the  Chinese  nature,  when 
possessed  by  some  master-passion,  from 
above  or  below,  that  there  are  limits  to 
the  desirability  of  any  long  continuance 
of  overpowering  emotion.  For  see,  my 
brothers,  the  stupendous  facts  of  God, 
of  sin,  of  Christ,  of  eternity,  are,  in  their 
fullness,  far  beyond  the  capacities  of  a 


292  The  Call  of  Cathay 

human  brain  to  bear.  It  is  only  a per- 
centage of  these  tremendous  facts  that 
we  can  realise  to  the  full,  and  live. 
God  kindly  veils  the  full  glory  that 
would  blind  and  blast.  God  checks  the 
imagination,  which,  if  it  went  out  too 
far  toward  infinity,  would  end  in  mania. 

Yet  the  essentials  of  Pentecost  must 
be  preserved,  for  the  true  Church  is 
always  the  Pentecostal  Church.  A re- 
vival is  a Pentecost  in  what  the  Greeks 
used  to  call  the  aorist  tense  ; what  is 
desired,  in  addition  to,  perhaps  eventu- 
ally instead  of,  these  sudden  overwhelm- 
ings,  is  a “ perfect  of  continued  action  ” : 
an  abiding  in  Christ,  and  in  love  to  the 
brethren  ; the  upkeep  of  the  communion 
of  God’s  devoted  ones,  communion  with 
Him,  in  touch  with  kindred  souls  ; and 
strenuous  supplication  day  by  day,  not 
so  much  to  “ my  ” Father — the  Father 
of  this  unit,  but  to  “ our  ” Father — the 
Father  of  God's  own  home-circle  on  earth. 
Which  latter  words  may  well  be  our 
definition  of  Pentecost,  in  its  innermost 
essence : the  shining  goal  of  all  our 
Mission  Study  and  praying  and  working 
and  living,  being  in  the  end  to  gain  a 


The  Call  of  the  Hour  293 

home-circle  for  God  as  wide  as  the 
human  race  upon  earth. 

Thus  it  is  in  the  direct  line  of  the 
highest  mission  ideal  to  supply  informa- 
tion for  little  heart-circles  in  Christ  for 
the  purpose  of  heart-in-heart  “ waiting 
upon  the  Lord  ” for  personal  power,  for 
power  that  is  shared,  for  power  that 
shall  vivify  our  own  Church  and  keep  it 
alive,  and  just  glowing  with  aggressive 
vigour.  These,  as  well  as  our  more 
statedly  organised  leagues  of  interces- 
sion, until  our  own  local  church,  and 
then  the  wider  Church  of  which  it  is 
the  local  representative — until  the 
multiple  soul  of  each  praying  band,  of 
God’s  own  united  ones^ — become  a great 
channel  for  the  larger  energies  of  God, 
connecting  the  Source  with  each  needy 
nation,  and  China ; a channel  from 
the  sea  of  Divine  fullness  to  the  Sahara 
of  mankind’s  vast  needs. 

Let  this,  then,  be  our  programme  with 
regard  to  the  conversion  of  China  : 
(1)  To  keep  the  two  Great  Command- 
ments in  the  Christ-love  which  the 
Master  will  lend  us,  that  love  which 
is  holiest  yearning — the  essence  of  all 


Our 

Programme. 


2 94  The  Call  of  Cathay 

supplication  and  service ; (2)  to  live 
the  prayer-life  ourselves,  that  life  of 
peace  with  God,  of  quiet  prayerfulness, 
of  frequently  strenuous  supplication 
(see  Phil.  iv.  6,  7) ; (3)  to  cultivate 

heart-unions  among  friends  in  Christ, 
and  pray  unitedly,  even  if  it  be  at  a 
distance  one  from  another  ; (4)  to  be 

faithful  members  of  some  league  for 
missionary  intercession  ; (5)  to  cheer 

one  another  with  such  words  as,  “ God, 
and  you  and  I will  yet  move  China.” 
And  it  shall  be  done.  It  is  being  done. 

Finally,  as  we  must  be  impressed 
more  and  more  that  all  spiritual  work, 
of  any  dynamic  and  eternal  value,  is 
at  its  basis  prayer-work ; that  the 
salvation  of  the  East  hangs  upon  the 
true  conversion  of  the  West  to  Christ 
and  the  prayer-life ; that  aggression 
abroad  cannot  reach  its  normal  rate 
apart  from  aggression  at  home, — let  us 
open  our  hearts  and  expand  our  imagin- 
ations to  demand  insistently  that  there 
shall  be  in  the  Christendom  of  our  day 
a revival  of  'prayer  and  supplication  com- 
parable in  its  far-reaching  results  to  the 
Reformation  under  Luther  in  Germany^ 


The  Call  of  the  Hour  295 

or  the  Revival  under  Wesley  in  England; 
for  only  thus  shall  we  be  demanding 
“ large  things  ” worthy  of  our  infinite 
God,  and  only  thus  shall  we  cope  with 
the  eternal  needs  of  the  rising  genera- 
tion, at  home  and  abroad,  in  China, 
and  the  world  of  redeemed  but  still 
unrescued  ones.  Living  our  little  lives, 
as  we  do,  in  the  anteroom  of  Eternity, 
a thousand  motives  appeal  to  us  to 
make  this  our  life-quest,  and,  high 
above  all, 

“ The  Lamb  for  sinners  slain. 

Redeemer,  King,  Creator,” 

demands  it — absolutely  demands  it— of 
all  who  name  His  name. 


ASSIGNMENTS  FOR  STUDY  CIRCLES 

STUDY  PROBLEM. — To  discover  the  spiritual 
possibilities  of  China. 

1.  What  are  the  great  defects  of  Chinese  character  ? 

2.  Think  out  the  problem  of  China’s  childhood. 

3.  What  will  be  the  natural  effect  of  purely  secular 
education  on  the  rising  generation  of  Chinese  ? 

4.  What  effect  may  we  expect  a materialistic  China 
to  have  upon  the  world  ? 

5.  Are  the  Chinese  necessarily  materialistic  ? 

6.  What  is  the  “ Call  of  the  Hour  ” to  you  ? 


96 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  STUDY 

CoRNABY,  W.  A. — China  under  the  Searchlight. 
Webster,  J. — The  Revival  in  Manchuria. 
CoRNABY,  W.  A. — “ Let  us  Pray.'' 


Appendix  A 19^ 


tABULAR  VIEW  OF  THE  CHINESE  EMPIRE 


PROVINCE 

(With  meauiug  of  the  name,  as  given  by 
Professor  Harlan  P.  Reach. 

AREA. 

(iu  square 

POPULATION 

The  “ Eighteen  Provinces  ” 

Chihli  (“  Direct  Rule  ”) 

Shantung  (“  East  of  the  Hills  ”)  . . 
Kiangsu  (“  River  Thyme  ”) 
Chekiang  (“  Tidal-bore  River  ”)  . . 
Fukien  {“  Happily  Established  ”) 
Kwangtung  (“  Broad  East  ”) 
Kwangsi  (“  Broad  West  ”) 

Yunnan  (“  Cloudy  South  ”) 
Szechwan  (“  Four  Streams  ”) 

Kansu  (“  Voluntary  Reverence  ”) 
Shensi  (“  Western  Defiles  ”) 

Shansi  (“  West  of  the  Hills  ”) 

Honan  (“  South  of  the  River  ”)  . . 
Anhwei  (“  Peace  and  Plenty  ”)  . . 
Kiangsi  (“  West  of  the  River  ”)  . . i 
Hupeh  (“  North  of  the  Lake  ”)  . . 

Hunan  (“  South  of  the  Lake  ” ) .. 

Kweichow  (“  Noble  Province  ”)  . . I 

115,800 

55.970 
38,600 
36,670 
46,320 

99.970 
77,200 

146,680 

218,480 

125,450 

75,270 

81,830 

67,940 

54,810 

69,480 

71,410 

83,380 

67,160 

i 20,937,000 
i 38,247,900 

I 13,980,235 

1 11,580,692 
22,876,540 
31,865,251 
5,142,330 
12,324,574 
! 68,724,890 
10,385,376 
8,450,182 
12,200,456 
35,316,800 
23,670,314 
26,532,125 
35,280,685 
22,169,673 
7,650,282 

Total  for  China  proper  . . . . 

1,532,420 

407,335,305 

The  Dependencies 

Manchuria  . . 

Mongolia  . . . . 

Tibet 

Turkestan  (Chinese) 

363,610 

1,367,600 

463,200 

550,340 

16,000,000 

2.580.000 

6.500.000 

1.200.000 

Total  for  Dependencies 

2,744,750 

26,280,000 

Grand  Total  for  Empire 

4,277,170 

433,615,305 

Note. — The  above  figures  are  taken  from  The  Statesman's 
Year  Book  (1906),  and  it  must  be  understood  that  they  are 
only  approximate.  No  really  careful  census  of  the  Chinese 
Empire  has  yet  been  taken. 


10* 


29B  The  Call  of  Cathay 


APPENDIX  B 

THE  W.M.M.S.  EUROPEAN  STAFF. 

(I)  THE  CANTON  DISTRICT 

{List  of  afpointments  from  1851  to  1910) 

Arrival  on 

the  Fielfl.  Name.  Retired. 

1851  Piercy,  Georg© 1882 

1852  Cox,  Josiah  . , . .(transferred  to  Hankow  1862) 

1852  Beach,  W.  R 1856 

1854  Hutton,  Samuel . 1865 

1854  Preston,  John 1875 

1854  Smith,  Samuel  J 1866 

1859  Parkes,  John  S 1865 

1862  Parkes,  Henry . . 1882 

1865  Gibson,  Joseph  1880 

1865  Rogers,  John  H 1869 

1866  Napier,  F.  P.,  B.A (trans.  to  Hankow  1867) 

1866  Whitehead,  Silvester 1877 

1868  Selby,  Thomas  G 1882 

1873  Sinzininex,  Edward  1875 

1874  Masters,  Frederic  J 1884 

1876  Jackson,  James 1878 

1876  Friend,  Hilderic 1880 

1878  Hargreaves,  Grainger 1892 

1879  Harris,  George  1882 

1880  Wenyon,  Charles,  M.D 1896 

1880  Bone,  Charles 

1882  Tope,  S.  George 

1882  Bridie,  William 1905 

1883  Parker,  Henry  J 1893 


Appendix  B 


299 

Arrival  on 

the  Field.  Name.  Retired. 

1884  Macdonald,  R.  J.  J.,  M.D murdered  190G 

1885  Anderson,  Anton  (med.  assist.) 1903 

188G  Turner,  J.  Arthur 1891 

1893  Musson,  William 1898 

1897  Dewstoe,  Edgar 

1899  Gaff,  Charles  A 

1899  Herrick,  T.  Shirley  1902 

1900  Anderson,  W.  J.  W.,  M.D.,  B.Ch — 

1901  Anderson,  Henry  E 

1902  Robinson,  Thomas 

1903  Keall,  Holmes 1903 

1903  Smith,  Dansey,  M.R.C.S.,  L.R.C.T 1910 

1904  Scholes,  T.  Wilfrid,  M.A 

1905  Rees,  Philip,  B.A.,  B.Sc.,  M.D 

1905  Hutchinson,  Robert  . 

1906  Ellison,  Robert  

1907  Hooker,  Alfred  W.,  M.B.,  B.S 

1908  Baker,  J.  A.  A 1910 

1910  Temple,  John  R 

Women’s  Auxiliary 

1862  MaryGunson 1863 

1863  Elizabeth BroxhoLme  (Mrs.  J.  Gibson).  . . . 1868 

1866  Jane  Radcliffe  (Mrs.  J.  Jackson)  1878 

1872  M.  E.  Simp.son  1879 

1873  Sara  Jane  Rowe 1879 

1874  Annie  Taylor  (Mrs.  G.  Piercy)  1877 

1885  Annie  Wood  . 1904 

1893  Rose  Jane  Clift  1896 

1897  Sarah  Wilson  (Mrs.  Dewstoe)  1903 

1903  F.  A.  Britton  

1904  Ruth  E.  Briscombe  1908 

1907  Amy  L.  Perkins  


300 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


(II)  THE  WUCHANG  MSTHICT 


{List  of  appointments  from  1863  to  1910) 


Arrival  on 

the  Field.  Name.  Retired. 


1863  Cox,  Josiah  (transferred  from  Canton)  . . 1875 

1864  Smith,  F.  Porter,  M.B 1870 


1865  Hill,  David  died  on  field  1896 

1865  Scarborough,  William  1885 

1867  Napier,  F.  P.,  B.A.  (trans.  from  Canton)  1871 
1869  Hardey,  E.  P.,  M.R.C.S 1875 

1872  Brewer,  J.  W 1886 

1873  Mitchil,  C.  W.  (self-supporting  lay  mis- 

sionary)   died  on  field  1902 

1873  Race,  J died  on  field  1880 

1874  Nightingale,  A.  W died  on  field  1884 

1875  Bramfitt,  T 1899 

1875  Tomlinson,  W.  S 1882 

1876  Langley,  A.,  M.R.C.S 1878 

1878  Fordham,  J.  S 1882 

1880  North,  T.  E 

1882  Bell,  J died  on  field  1885 


1882  Watson,  W.  H (transferred  to  Hunan  1903) 


1884  Boden,  Frederick  1893 

1884  Barber,  W.  T.  A.,  M.A.,  D.D 1893 

1885  Cornaby,  W.  Arthur  

1886  Warren,  Gilbert  G (trans.  to  Hunan  1907) 

1887  Hodge,  S.  Rupert,  M.R.C.S...  died  on  field  1907 

1890  Bone,  Robert  died  on  field  1890 


1890  Hill,  J.  K 

1893  Pullan,  G.  Leach 1910 

1894  Gedye,  Ernest  F 

1895  Allan,  C.  Wilfred 


1896  Clayton,  George  A.  . 
1896  Sutton,  Henry  B.  . . 


Appendix  B 


301 


Arrival  on 

the  Field.  Name.  Retired. 

1896  Scholes,  Ernest  F.  P (trans.  to  Hunan  1905) 

1899  Rowley,  William  

1899  Rose,  Austin  C.  . 1907 

1901  Gibson,  William  W (trans.  to  Hunan  1903) 

1901  Booth,  Robert  T.,M.B.,  B.Ch 

1901  Entwistle,  D.  (lay  missionary)  1909 

1902  Helps,  J.  Sydney 

1902  Tatchell,  W.  Arthur,  M.R.C.S 

1902  Rattenbury,  Harold  B.,  B.A 

1904  Lee,  Sylvester  

1906  Page,  Norman  

1907  Cundall,  E.,  M.B.,  B.Ch.  (lay  missionary)  

1908  Minty,  C.  S 

1908  Pell,  J.  W.,  L.R.C.S.  (lay  missionarj^ 

transferred  from  Hunan)  

1909  Thomas,  G.  M 

1910  Harker,  A.  J.  (lay  missionary") 

1910  Simon,  A.  Gordon,  M.Sc 

Central  China  Lay  Mission 


1885  Miles,  George  

1886  Reid,  W.  H 1887 

1886  Morley,  Arthur,  L.R.C.S.  and  P 

1888  Protheroe,  Thomas  (entered  ministry,  1899) 

died  on  field  1908 
1888  Poole,  F 1892 

1888  Rowe,  J Retired 

1889  Fortune,  P.  T 1892 

1890  Dowson,  J.  L 1891 


“Joyful  News”  Mission 

1888  Hudson,  S.  J 

1888  Tollerton,  A.  C 


died  1892 

.died  on  field  1891 


302 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


Arrival  on 

the  Field.  Name.  Retired. 

1890  Cooper,  Ernest  C.  (entered  ministry) 

(transferred  to  Hunan  1902) 

1890  Argent,  William  murdered  1891 

1892  Berkin,  John Retired 

1892  Shaw,  W.  H Retired 

1892  Fryer,  G Retired 

1892  Pell,  J.  W (transferred  to  Hunan  1906) 

1893  Champness,  C.  S.  (entered  ministry  1907)  

1893  Dempsey,  P.  T.  (entered  ministry  1903)  

Women’s  Auxiliary 


1885  Grace  Louisa  Owen  (Mrs.  Sugden) 1894 

1885  Gertrude  Williams  (Mrs.  Bridie) 1887 

1888  Ida  Elizabeth  Lyon 1894 

1888  Martha  Bell,  Mrs 1904 

1892  Mary  E.  Parkes  (Mrs.  North) 1896 

1893  Lizzie  Dimcan died  on  the  field  1894 

1893  Brena  Eacott  (Mrs.  Entwistle)  1904 

1893  Emily  A.  Minchin 1898 

1893  Annie  E.  Parker 1898 

1895  Florence  Powell  (Mrs.  G.  A.  Clayton)  ....  1899 

1895  Ann  E.  Lister 1900 

1895  Ethel  Gough,  L.S.A.  (Mrs.  Rowley) 1905 

1898  Ada  E.  Hocking 1902 

1898  Annie  E.  Pomeroy  (Mrs.  Champness)  ....  1903 

1899  Margaret  H.  Wilkinson 1906 

1899  C.  Gwen  Ingram  (Mrs.  Dempsey) 1906 

1899  Margaret  Bennett,  M.D.  died  on  the  field  1903 

1902  Jean  Shillington  ..  1906 

1903  Edith  Brewer  (Mrs.  H.  B.  Rattenbury)  . . 1908 

1903  Emily  Mitchil,  Mrs 

1904  Katherine  Wheatley  (Mrs.  Hardy  Jowett)  1910 

1905  Winifred  Protheroe  1908 

1906  Helen  Vickers,  M.B.,  Ch.B.  (Mrs.  Hadden)  1909 


Appendix  B 


303 


Arrival  on 

the  Field.  Name.  Retired. 

1906  Lizzie  Longstaff 

1907  Nora  Booth  

1907  Annie  Reid 

1909  Phyllis  Russell,  B.A 

1909  Carrie  Crawford,  M.B.,  Ch.B 

1909  Isabel  Wilkinson,  M.B.,  Ch.B 

1909  F.  Ewins,  B.A 

1910  Lily  Harris 

(III)  THE  HUNAN  DISTRICT 
List  of  Appointments  from  1902  to  1910 

1902  Cooper,  Ernest  C.  (trans.  from  Hupeh)  . . 

1903  Watson,  William  H.  (trans.  from  Hupeh) . . 

1903  Jowett,  Hardy 

1903  Gibson,  William  W 

1904  Webster,  James 

1904  Johnson,  Vincent  

1904  Pillow,  William  H 

1905  Scholes,  Ernest  F.  P 

1906  Pell,  J.  W.,  L.R.C.S.  (lay  missionary 

trans.  to  Hupeh  1908) 

1907  Warren,  Gilbert  G.  (trans.  from  Hupeh).  . 

1907  Alexander,  J.  A 

1907  Hadden,  G.,  M.B.,  C.M.  (lay  missionary)  

1907  Champness,  C.  S 

1908  Heyward,  W.  B.,  M.D.,  Ch.B.  (lay  miss.)  

1908  Little,  C.  D 

1909  Cowling,  E.,  B.D 

1909  Oakes,  W.  L.,  B.D 


Women’s  Auxiliary 
1907  Jessie  E.  Denham 


304 


The  Call  of  Cathay 


APPENDIX  C 

THE  OTHER  METHODIST  MISSIONS  IN 
CHINA 

Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  U.S.A.  {North) 

The  first  missionaries  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  sent  to  China  were  Judson  D.  Collins  and 
Moses  C.  White.  They  arrived  at  Foochow  on 
September  4,  1847,  receiving  a hearty  welcome  from 
missionaries  of  the  American  Board,  who  had  arrived 
in  the  earlier  part  of  the  same  year.  After  eight 
months  they  were  joined  by  Henry  Hickok  and 
R.  S.  Maclay,  the  latter,  from  his  long  uninterrupted 
service,  becoming  practically  the  founder  of  Method- 
ism in  Eastern  Asia.  From  1863  onwards  this 
mission  was  blessed  by  its  having  as  Chinese  preacher 
Mr.  Ling  Ching-ting,  a man  of  apostolic  zeal.  Work 
was  commenced  in  Kiangsi  Province  in  1866,  when 
V.  C.  and  Mrs.  Hart  were  sent  to  Kiukiang  ; and 
in  Peking  in  the  spring  of  1869,  when  L.  N.  and 
Mrs.  Wheeler  were  sent  there.  These  were  heroic 
branchings  forth,  as  they  left  the  force  at  Foochow 
consisting  of  just  two  men  and  one  lady.  In  1861 
West  China,  the  Province  of  Szechwan,  claimed  the 
attention  of  the  mission  ; and  in  1896  a little  district 
nearer  headquarters — Hinghwa.  South-east  China 
is  a region  of  varied  dialects,  and  here  in  a district 
75  miles  by  40  were  three  millions  speaking  a dialect 
all  their  own.  Not  only  was  a flourishing  mission 
started  there  in  1896,  but  there  is  published  there 


Appendix  c 305 

a doubk  issue  of  a magazine  called  The  Revivaliatt 
one  issue  in  wen-U,  the  other  in  rornanised  colloquial. 
The  larger  districts  have  university  colleges  for  male 
students,  remarkably  fine  girls’  boarding-schools, 
and  hospitals,  in  addition  to  vigorous  evangelism 
of  the  preached  Gospel.  In  1906  there  were  in  the 
mission  as  a whole  : missionaries  and  wives,  123  ; 
women  workers  of  the  Women’s  Foreign  Missionary 
Society,  70.  This  latter  auxiliary  had  been  organised 
in  1869,  sending  its  agents  to  North  and  South  China 
in  1871,  to  Central  China  in  1872,  and  to  West  China 
in  1882.  Membership  (1906)  in  Foochow  District, 
6,269  ; Hinghwa,  2,895  ; Central  China,  1,011  ; North 
China,  3,585  ; West  China,  1,256. 

Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  U.S.A.  [South) 

The  Southern  Methodist  Mission  was  opened  in 
Shanghai  by  C.  Taylor,  M.D.,  and  J.  Jenkins,  D.D., 
the  former  arriving  in  September  1848,  the  latter 
in  March  1849.  These  were  followed  by  six  others 
before  the  end  of  1860,  the  last  to  arrive  being  young 
J.  Allen,  of  wide  journahstic  fame,  who  laboured  in 
China  till  the  end  of  1907.  The  mission  occupies 
the  southern  end  of  Kiangsu  and  the  northern  end 
of  Chekiang  Provinces,  one  of  the  most  densely 
populated  regions  in  China.  Among  its  outstanding 
features  are  the  Soochow  University,  founded  in 
1899;  the  Anglo-Chinese  College,  Shanghai,  opened 
in  1881  ; the  McTyeire  School  for  girls,  in  Shanghai, 
whose  musical  prowess  is  mentioned  on  page  283  ; 
and  finely  equipped  hospitals.  Evangelistic  and 
literary  work  are  vigorously  carried  on.  The  number 
of  missionaries  on  the  field  in  1906  was  sixty,  in- 
cluding wives  of  missionaries  and  the  representatives 
of  the  Women’s  Board.  Communicants,  1,754. 


3o6  The  Call  of  Cathay 

English  Methodist  New  Connexion  Missionary 
Society 

This  society  entered  China  in  1860,  commencing 
work  in  Tientsin  in  1861,  then  occupying  other 
stations  in  Shantung  Province.  A fine  Theological 
College  was  commenced  in  1876,  of  which  G.  T. 
Candlin  is  principal.  It  has  been  the  policy  of  this 
mission  to  employ  a large  body  of  Chinese  assistants. 
The  number  of  these  has  reached  180,  and  includes 
preachers,  ordained  and  unordained,  catechists, 
school-teachers,  and  unpaid  workers.  There  are 
three  hospitals.  No  less  than  a hundred  members 
were  put  to  death  during  the  Boxer  outbreak,  but 
their  numbers  have  been  more  than  made  up  since. 
The  number  of  missionaries  in  1906  was  ten  ; mem- 
bers, 2,710. 

English  Methodist  Free  Church  Mission 

This  mission  entered  China  in  October  1864,  on 
the  arrival  of  W.  R.  Fuller  at  Ningpo,  who  was 
joined  in  August  1865  by  J.  Mara.  Frederic  Galpin 
arrived  in  1868,  and  to  him  more  than  any  other  is 
due  the  real  establishment  of  the  work.  In  1872  the 
United  Presbyterians  decided  to  concentrate  their 
forces  in  Manchuria,  and  handed  over  to  Mr.  Galpin 
their  two  stations  and  twenty  converts.  Mr.  Galpin 
worked  faithfully  for  nearly  thirty  years,  retiring 
in  1896,  from  failure  of  health.  In  1906  this  district 
had  five  male  missionaries,  and  one  woman  worker. 
Chinese  preachers  (including  local  preachers),  69 ; 
church  members,  1,739. 

Wenchow,  a port  in  the  south  of  Chekiang  Prov- 
ince, having  been  opened  to  foreign  trade  by  the 
Cheefoo  Agreement  of  1876,  Mr.  Galpin  sent  Mr.  R.  I. 
Riley  to  commence  work  there.  He  died  after 


Appendix  C 307 

three  years,  when  W.  E.  Soothill  arrived  to  fill  the 
vacant  post.  The  work  has  since  prospered  greatlj^ 
(see  A Mission  in  China,  by  W.  E.  Soothill). 
The  city  church  accommodates  over  1,000,  and  is 
well  attended.  Here  also  a revival  broke  out  in 
1909,  and  blessed  the  out-stations,  where  there  are 
churches  holding  600.  The  confidence  of  the  people 
has  been  won  to  the  extent  that  over  a dozen  ancestral 
temples  have  been  rented,  at  a nominal  sum,  as 
chapels,  chiefly  among  the  mountain  clans.  Mr. 
Soothill  also  commenced  educational  work,  which 
has  grown  to  a college  of  200  students.  For  two 
years  (1910)  he  has  been  Principal  of  the  Shansi 
University,  on  behalf  of  the  Chinese  Government, 
but  pays  periodic  visits  to  his  old  station.  The  staff 
in  Wenchow  consisted  in  1906  of  five  missionaries, 
one  of  them  medical  and  one  educational.  Chinese 
preachers,  regular,  20;  local,  131 ; baptised  members, 
144. 


Canadian  Methodist  Mission  in  West  China 

The  pioneer  party  of  this  mission  arrived  in  China 
in  November  1891,  but,  as  the  Yangtse  Valley  was 
then  in  a disturbed  condition,  did  not  proceed  to 
Szechwan  till  February  1892.  There  were  eight 
members  of  the  party,  four  men  and  their  wives, 
the  leader  being  V.  C.  Hart,  D.D.,  who  had  been 
formerly  Superintendent  of  the  M.  E.  Mission  in 
Central  China.  In  1895  riots  broke  out  in  Chentu, 
and  every  mission  building  was  destroyed.  But 
in  1896-7  new  premises  were  erected,  and  the  work 
carried  on  without  a break,  except  during  the  Boxer 
year  of  1900.  Evangehstic,  educational,  medical 
work,  women’s  work,  have  all  yielded  their  happy 
results.  There  is  also  a Mission  Press  for  the  printing 


joS  The  Cali  of  Cathay 

of  tracts  and  Gospels  ; and  a Book-Room  connected 
with  the  press.  In  1906  there  were  13  missionaries, 
11  wives,  11  single  women  workers,  43  churches, 
302  communicants.  And — what  applies  to  so  many 
missions — it  may  be  said  here  that  the  mere  statistics 
of  membership  by  no  means  represent  the  full  spiritual 
achievements  of  the  mission  work. 

Free  Methodist  Church  of  North  America 

The  Missionary  Society  of  this  Church  entered 
China  in  1904.  Its  field  is  in  Honan  Province, 
Chengchow  city,  and  adjacent  regions.  In  1906  its 
missionaries  were  eight  in  number,  and  its  converts 
three. 


W.  A.  C. 


AIAP  TO  ILLUSTRATE  “THE  CALL  OF  CATHAY.” 

W.M.M.S.  PROVINCES  MARKED  WITH  HEAVY  BLACK  LINES. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


GENERAL 

Things  Chinese.  J.  Dyer  Ball,  1904.  (Murray,  12^. 
net.)  A series  of  alphabetically  arranged  articles. 
Useful  for  reference. 

The  Chinese  Empire.  Marshall  Broomhall,  B.A.,  1907. 
(Morgan  & Scott,  7s.  6d.)  A general  and  missionary 
survey  of  the  provinces  and  dependencies  of  China.' 
Most  useful. 

A Mission  in  China.  W.  E.  Soothill,  1906.  (Oliphant, 
5s.  net. ) Very  interesting  account  of  mission  methods, 
with  useful  chapters  on  the  religions. 

The  Great  Chinese  Awakening.  A.  R.  Kelley,  1909. 
(Culley,  Is.  net.)  Contains  a good  deal  of  information 
about  China  and  Chinese  missions.  Specially  useful 
for  beginners. 

New  Forces  in  Old  China.  A.  J.  Brown,  1904.  (Re veil, 
5s.  net.)  Shows  how  European  trade,  politics,  and 
religion  have  influenced  China. 

Present-day  Conditions  in  China.  Marshall  Broom- 
hall,  B.A.,  1908.  (Morgan  & Scott,  Is.)  A brief 
account  of  present-day  changes.  Very  useful. 

Changing  China.  Lord  W.  Gascoyne-Cecil,  1910.  (Nes- 
bit,  10s.  6d.  net.)  An  up-to-date  survey  of  the 
subject.  Very  striking. 

The  Uplift  of  China.  A.  H.  Smith,  D.D.,  1906. 
(W.M.M.S.,  2s.  net.)  The  Study  Text-book  for 

1907-8.  By  the  Chairman  of  the  last  Shanghai 
Conference. 


310  The  Call  of  Cathay 

Dawn  on  the  Hills  of  T‘ang.  Harlan  P.  Beach,  1905. 
(Student  Movement,  2s.  Gd.)  Student  Study  Text- 
book. Very  useful.  Contains  much  information. 
Children  of  China.  C.  Campbell  Brown,  1910.  (Oli- 
phant.  Is.  Gd.  net.)  Capital  account  of  child-life. 
Pastor  Hsi.  Mrs.  Howard  Taylor,  1907.  (Morgan  & 
Scott,  3s.  Gd.)  A most  remarkable  biography  of  a 
Chinese  Christian. 

The  China  Martyrs  of  1900.  R.  C.  Forsyth,  1904. 
(R.T.S.,  7s.  Gd.)  The  most  complete  account  of  the 
Boxer  massacres. 

Fire  and  Sword  in  Shansi.  E.  H.  Edwards,  1903. 
(Oliphant,  2s.  Gd.  net.)  A vivid  pictme  of  the  Boxer 
massacres  in  Shansi. 

China  under  the  Searchlight.  W.  A.  Cornaby,  1901. 
(Fisher  Unwin,  6s.)  Chapters  on  Chinese  character- 
istics by  the  able  author  of  The  Call  of  Cathay. 
Confucianism  and  Taoism.  R.  K.  Douglas,  1895. 
(S.P.C.K.,  2s.  Gd.)  The  best  brief  account  of  these 
religions. 

Buddhism  in  China.  S.  Beal,  1884.  (S.P.C.K.,  2s.  Gd.) 

The  best  brief  account  of  Chinese  Buddhism. 
Memoirs  of  Robert  Morrison.  By  his  widow,  1839. 

Out  of  print.  The  standard  biography. 

Robert  Morrison.  W.  J.  Townsend,  1888.  (Partridge, 
Is.  Gd.)  A good  brief  account. 

The  Story  of  the  China  Inland  Mission,  1894.  Geraldine 
Guinness.  (C.I.M.,  7s.  6d.)  A wonderful  record  of 
missionary  work. 


WESLEYAN  MISSIONS 

The  W.M.M.S.  China  Atlas.  With  Introduction  by 
Dr.  W.  T.  A.  Barber,  1893.  (W.M.M.S.,  Is.  Gd.) 

Old,  but  useful.  Good  maps. 

The  W.M.M.S.  in  China.  F.  Deaville  Walker,  1907. 
(W.M.M.S.,  3d.)  A brief  historic  sketch  of  Wesleyan 
Missions  in  China. 


Bibliography  3 1 1 

Kwang  Tung  : Five  Years  in  South  China.  J.  A. 

Turner,  1905.  (Partridge,  2s.) 

Methodism  in  Mid-China.  George  A.  Clayton,  1907. 
(Culley,  l5.  net.)  An  interesting  and  useful  account 
of  the  work  in  Hupeh. 

Rambles  in  Central  China.  W.  A.  Cornaby,  1896. 
(Kelly,  Is.  6d.)  A popular  account  of  Wesleyan 
work  in  mid-China. 

Our  Entry  into  Hunan.  C.  W.  Allan,  1909.  (Culley, 
2s.  6d. ) An  account  of  the  province,  and  the  attempts 
to  evangelise  it. 

Wesleyan  Medical  Missions  in  China.  W.  A.  Tatchell, 
1909.  (Culley,  2s.  6d.)  Fully  describes  the  W.M.M.S. 
medical  work,  its  history,  institutions,  and  results. 
David  Hill,  Missionary  and  Saint.  Dr.  W.  T.  A. 

Barber,  1899.  (Kelly,  3s.  Qd.) 

David  Hill  ; an  Apostle  to  the  Chinese.  Dr.  W.  T.  A. 
Barber,  1906.  (Culley,  Is.) 

How  David  Hill  Followed  Christ.  Jane  E.  Hellier, 
1899.  (Kelly,  2s.  6d.) 

Roderick  Macdonald.  By  his  wife,  1908.  (Kelly, 
2s.  6d.) 

Sydney  Rupert  Hodge,  the  Beloved  Physician.  J.  K. 
Hill,  1908.  (Kelly,  Is.) 

Chu  and  Lo  : Two  Chinese  Pastors.  C.  W.  Allan, 
1906.  (Kelly,  Is.)  Will  be  of  interest  to  all  readers 
of  The  Call  of  Cathay. 

The  General  Report  op  the  W.M.M.S.  (W.M.M.S.,  Is. 
net. ) Indispensable  to  the  student  of  Wesleyan  mis- 
sions. Contains  the  latest  information  and  statistics 
about  China. 

Note. — All  the  books  mentioned  in  this  Bibliography 
may  be  ordered  from  the  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary 
Society,  17  Bishopsgate  Street  Within,  London,  E.C. 
Orders  should  be  accompanied  by  remittance  (postage 
extra). 


INDEX 


Adaptability,  Chinese,  38 
Aims  of  Young  China,  252,  253 
Alexander,  B.  H.,  a Hunan  pioneer, 
203 

Allan,  C.  W.,  his  life  endangered,184 
Allcock,  Sir  Rutherford,  quoted,  2 
Allen,  Young  J.,  Christian  journa- 
list, 103 

Ancestors,  homage  to,  13,  14 
Anti-foreignness,  its  beginning,  2, 58 
Archibald,  John,  his  pioneer  jour- 
neys, 202 

Argent,  William,  killed  at  Wusueh, 
95,  177,  201 

Armenian  lady  in  China,  an,  54 
Attempted  English  mission  (1550), 
58 

Awakening  in  China,  causes  of  the, 
240-56 


Bell,  Joseph,  and  the  Teian  riot,  168 
Bennett,  Dr.  Margaret,  medical 
work  and  death,  186,  187 
Berkin,  John,  a price  put  on  his 
head,  185 

Bible  and  Tract  Societies,  105 
Blind  School  at  Hankow,  179 
Booth,  Dr.  B.  T.,  173,  190 
Boxer  outbreak,  96, 112, 187 
Bramfitt,  Thomas,  his  clemency 
towards  rioters,  171 
Brewer,  John  W.,  and  the  opening 
of  Teian,  167 

British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society, 
73, 105 
Buddhism — 

first  image  brought  to  China,  25 

first  monks  in  China  from  India, 
27 

its  early  teaching  characterised, 
27  n 

encouraged  by  Hunnish  rulers, 
27,  50 

Chinese  first  allowed  to  become 
monks,  28 


Buddhism — con  t. 

Fa  Hsien  and  his  travels,  28 
monasteries  suppressed,  29,  47 
modified  bv  Nestorian  teaching, 
31,  32,  45-6 

“ on  its  last  legs  ” (H.  E.  Chang 
Chih-tung,  1898),  32 
its  last  fillip  in  China,  58 
comparative  strength  in  Hunan, 
199, 234 

“ unable  to  reform  society  ” 
(Maeda  Gun),  266 


Canton, 76, 83, 114, 117, 144,  145 
Cantonese  characteristics,  115 
Theological  Institution,  133 
Carpini,  John  de  Plano,  a Preaching 
Friar,  49 

Cathay,  origin  of  the  word,  41  n 
“ Cataian  ” in  Shakespeare,  1 
Catholic  Missions  in  China,  71 
“ Celestial  ” means  Imperial,  and  is 
not  applicable  to  the  populace, 
14 

Chang  Chih-tung,  H.  E.,  on  Budd- 
hism and  Taoism,  32 
Chang  Yi-tsz,  conversion  and  pion- 
eering, 204, 205,  206 
“ Changeless  East,”  the,  236 
Changsha,  207 

riots  at,  97.  210-15 
Characteristics  of  China,  4,  5 
of  the  Hunanese,  19,  197-200 
of  Hupeh,  19 
of  the  Chinese,  35-8 
of  the  Cantonese,  115 
Chenchow,  222 
China,  origin  of  the  name,  40 
ancient  records,  3 
characteristics,  3,  4 
division  into  dukedoms,  22 
the  word  Ch‘in  appli^  to  the 
West,  43  n 
Young  China,  252-4 
Young  China’s  grievances,  255-7 


313 


314  The  Call 


Chinese  race,  its  first  appearance,  15 
question  of  its  origin,  15-16 
Christian  literature  and  journalism, 
81, 103, 105 

Christian  soldier,  a,  219 
Christianity  quoted  as  good,  38 
“ borrowing  from  Buddhism,” 
32,  45-6 

Church-members,  Chinese,  127 
Chii  Shao-an,  the  first  ordained 
Wesleyan  minister  in  Central 
China,  93,  156,  159 
Clannishness,  Chinese,  238 
Clayton,  G.  A.,  attacked,  184 
Corhity  in  mission  work,  93,  145, 
149,  226 

Commercial  integrity,  Chinese,  36 
Confucianism  not  a religion,  23 
question  of  compatibility  with 
Christianity,  23 
Confucius,  22 

important  elements  in  his  teach- 
ing, 260-2 

Cooper,  E.  C.,  pioneering  in  Hunan, 
207 , 208,  21 9,2  21, 224,  232 
Cornaby,  W.  A.,  and  the  Ta  Tung 
Pao,  104 

his  story  of  answ'ered  prayer,  230 
Corvino,  John  de  Monte,*^  a pre- 
Reformation  pioneer  in  China, 
49,  51-3 

Courtesy,  Chinese,  36 
Cox,  Josiah,  first  Wesleyan  mission- 
ary to  Central  China,  93,  116, 
156-60, 178, 181, 194,  201-2 
Cundall,  Dr.,  at  Anlu,  189 
“ Cunning,  Chinese,”  1,  36 
Customs,  Imperial  Maritime,  258 

Denominational  separatism,  79 
Dictionary,  the  first  Chinese-En- 
glish,  79 

Williams’s  Syllabic,  86 
Difficulties,  Morrison’s  early,  76,  77 
of  Protestant  missions,  99,  100, 
101, 126, 141 

Dorw'ard,  Adam,  pioneer  in  Hunan, 
174, 203 

Drummond,  Professor  Henry,  on 
China,  236 

Edicts,  Imperial — 

against  Roman  Catholic  missions, 
67 

against  Christian  books,  80 
for  the  abolition  of  opium,  89  n 
proclaimng  clan-rights  lor  Chris- 
tians, 171 

tolerating  Christianity,  177 
abolishing  examination  essays, 
250 

for  the  remodelling  of  schools  and 
colleges,  251 


of  Cathay 


Edicts  Imperial — cont. 

recommending  students  to  study 
abroad,  251 

abolishing  the  county  examina- 
tions, 251 

Educational  Missions,  79,  123-6, 
178-81 

Encouragements  from  the  riots,  285 
in  South  China,  138-40 
English  mission  attempted  in  1550, 
58 

first  war  with  China,  82 
second  war  with  China,  88,  89 
Evangelism  described,  118-19 
Explosion  of  the  Wuchang  powder 
magazine,  163 
Fa  Hsien  and  his  travels,  28 
“ Fairy  Peach  Mart,”  189,  231 
Family  and  tribal  units,  9 
Filial  piety  in  China,  37 
“ Foreign  devil  ” (originally  pirate), 
2,58,98 

Fox,  George,  quoted,  281 

Gentry,  semi-official,  166,  172,  175, 
200,  216 

Gibson,  W.  W.,  at  Paokingfu,  218, 
221 

God,  in  ancient  China,  6,  10,  11 
Shang  Ti  and  T'ien  Chii,  12 
GutzlafT,  Karl,  86 

Halde,  Du,  on  the  Wu-Han  centre, 
92 

Han  Ming  Ti  sending  for  Buddhist 
monks,  26 

Han  Wu  Ti  and  the  first  Buddhist 
image,  25 

Hangchow  , 54,  55,  94 
Hankow  and  Hanyang,  92,  152, 158 
burning  of,  156,  228-9 
Hasty  baptisms,  51,  57,  61-2 
Heroic  statesmen,  tw^o,  97 
Hill,  David,  93, 162-6, 169, 179, 182 
Hill,  J.  K.,  181,  183 
History — 

commencement  of  historical  re- 
cords, 6 

dynasties,  table  of,  20 
rise  and  fall  of  dynasties,  21 
Hodge,  Sydney  R.,  162,  172,  189-90 
Home  and  foreign  missions  one, 
277-80 

Hong  Kong,  cession  of,  84 

W.M.M.S.  work  in,  117,  118,144 
Hu,  Queen  of  Wei,  murderess,  30 
Human  race,  progress  from  barbar- 
ism, 8 

Hunan  described,  196 

characteristics  of  its  people,  197- 
200 

visited  by  Josiah  Cox,  160,  202 
opposition  to  foreigners,  174 


Index 


Hunnish  rulers  of  North  China,  27 
their  encouragement  of  Budd- 
hism, 27-8, 50 


Ideals,  Chinese,  38,  254 
Imperial  worship  of  God,  13 
Incubation  of  the  universe,  6 
Industry,  Chinese,  37-8 

Jesus,  the  name  of,  honoured  in 
China,  267-8 

John,  Griffith,  92-3  ,152,  202 
Journalism,  the  rise  of  Chinese,  246 
Jowett,  Hardy,  185 

Kiaochow,  taken  by  Germany,  96, 
159, 253 
Kiukiang,  90 

Kuan-yih,  the  son-bestowing  god- 
dess, 31-2 

Kublai  Khan,  49,  57 
Kwangtung  and  Kwangsi,  114-49 

Lacouperie,  Professor  de,  15 
Lady-workers  in  China,  108 
Language,  colloquial  and  wen-li,  78 
Mandarin  and  other  dialects,  18 
difficulty  of  the  complete,  78 
Lao  Tzii,  the  philosopher,  23-4 
“ Large  ingatherings,”  57,  91,  99 
Legge,  Dr.  James,  and  the  Chinese 
classics,  87 
Leper  home,  122 

Liang  Wu  Ti,  emperor  and  Buddhist 
monk,  29 

Literature,  anti-Christian,  200,  271 
Christian,  81, 103, 105,  245 
Lo  Yu-shan,  189,  207,  228-33 
Lockhart,  Dr,,  first  British  medical 
missionary  to  China,  87 


Macdonald,  Dr.  R.  J.  J.,  121-3 
killed  by  pirates,  142 
Magazines,  Review  of  the  Times, 
103 

Ta  Tung  Pao,  104 
lor  church  members,  106 
Mandarin,  derivation  of  the  word, 
34  n 

dialect,  18 

office  and  characteristics,  34-5 
opposition  to  missions,  101,  188, 
193 

more  friendly  spirit,  101 
abuses  inherent  to  the  system, 
238,  255-9 

Marco  Polo  quoted,  48 
Materialistic  outlook,  35,  265 
Mazzini  quoted,  264 
Means  of  grace,  133-4 
Medhurst,  H.,  80 


315 


Medical  missions,  87,  120-5,  161-2, 
172-3,  186-92 

Methods,  comparative  study  of,  69 
Middle  Realm,  origin  of  the  term,  20 
Miles,  George,  166,  173 
Milne,  Wm.,  colleague  of  Morrison, 
78 

Mitchil,  Charles  W.,  168,  169 
Moral  and  religious  outlook,  260 
Morality  under  the  tribal  unit,  9 
Morley,  Dr.  Arthur,  172,  187-8 
Morrison,  Robert,  74-81 
Moule,  Bishop  G.  E.,  94 
Muirhead,  William,  92 
Musical  and  religious  sensibilities, 
282-9 

Native  agents,  training  of,  123, 133 
Need,  the  world’s,  147 
Nestorjan  Tablet,  42-7 

omission  of  the  Cross  and  prayer, 
45 

missions  in  China,  70 
Nestorians  in  favour  for  two  cen- 
turies, 47 

suppression  of  Nestorian  monas- 
teries, 47 

missionaries  in  China  until  the 
thirteenth  century,  48 
Newspapers,  rise  of  Chinese,  247 
edict  against,  247  n 
Nu  Kien,  Viceroy  of  Canton,  84 

Obstacles  to  progress,  109,  141 
Oderic  de  Friuli,  an  ascetic  monk,  55 
Olopun,  a Nestorian  pioneer,  45 
Opium,  the  first  British  war,  82-4 
second  British  war  and  the  smug- 
gling of,  88-90 
edict  for  the  abolition  of,  89 
“ Oppression  ” of  China,  255-6 
Origin  of  the  Chinese,  15, 16 

Pastorate,  the,  131 
Patriarchal  government,  34 
Patriarchal  religion,  ancient,  10-12 
Peking  Gazette,  the,  246 
Pentecostal  Church,  the,  292 
Piercy,  George,  W.M.M.S.  pioneer 
to  Canton,  116 
Pingkiang,  215 
Pirate  marauders,  2,  58,  67 
Poetry  of  missions,  the,  85,  86 
Politics  and  missions,  67 
Prayer,  a story  of  answered,  230 
in  relation  to  China,  265-8 
revival  of,  needed,  294 
Press,  the  first  mission,  79 
Priest-kings  of  China,  11 
Protestant  Missions  in  China,73-112 
Provincial  distinctiveness,  19 
Protheroe,  Thomas,  his  many  la- 
bours, 192-3 


3i6  The  Call 


Reign-mottoes  of  Chinese  emperors, 
65  n 

Religion,  China’s  ancient,  6,  10-13 
Ruddhism,  Chinese,  25-32,  46, 
50,  57-8 

Ruddhism,  Japanese,  265 
Confucius’  attitude  toward,  22-3 
Taoism,  24-5,  32,  50 
Three  cults  mingled,  32 
Religious  ? Are  the  Chinese,  33, 
199,  282-90 
Religious  mania,  292 
Review  of  the  Times,  103-4 
Revival  in  China,  286-90 
after  results,  290-1 
of  prayer  needed,  294 
Revolutions,  futility  of  Chinese,  264 
Right  of  residence  in  the  interior, 
90  ft 

Riots,  list  of  anti-foreign,  94-7 
encouragement  from,  285 
Rising  generation  in  China,  272-6 
Roman  Catholic  missions,  48-69 
Pope  Gregory  IX.,  49 
John  de  Plano  Carpini,  49 
John  de  Monte  Corvino,  49-53 
Oderic  de  Friuli,  55 
Abbe  Hue’s  comment  on,  56 
St.  Francis  Xavier,  59 
Matteo  Ricci,  59-61,  63 
Schaal  and  Verbiest,  61,  63 
trouble  brewing  for,  64-6 
Father  Rina,  64-5 
statistics  of  (1906),  68 
Russell,  Lord,  quoted,  82 

Sages  and  philosophers  of  China,  22 
Scarborough,  William,  162,  205 
Scholes,  E.  F.  P.,  at  Lotien,  184 
Shanghai  opened  as  a Treaty  Port, 

“ Shield  King,”  the,  156 
Shih  Hu,  a Hunnish  ruler,  29 
Shinkoron,  a Ruddhist  magazine, 
quoted,  266 

Shiuchow,  Kwangtung,  117 
Si  Tai-kai,  233-5 
Smith,  Dr.  F.  Porter,  161,  242  n 
Sociability,  Chinese,  37 
Squalor  of  thought,  269 
Stagnation,  Chinese,  239 
Statesmen,  from  Hunan,  198 
two  heroic,  97 

Statistics,  Roman  Catholic,  68 
Protestant,  109 
Canton,  135,  143 


of  Cathay  \ 

e*: 

Stevenson,  J.  W.,  China  Inland 
Mission  pioneer,  94 
Students  residing  abroad,  252,  278 
Sunwui,  Kwangtung,  117, 130 
Support  and  control  of  churches 
130 

Sutton,  H.  R.,  house  looted,  188 

Ta  Tung  Pao  magazine,  104 
T'ang  Ming  Wang,  47 
T'ang  T‘ai  Tsung,  30,  43  n 

his  daughter  queen  of  Tibet,  31 
T‘ang,  the  chieftain,  11 
Taiping  rebellion,  88,  93,  155-7, 
228-9 

Tao,  the  word,  as  used  by  Lao  Tzu, 
24  ’] 

Taoism,  24-5,  50  I 

Tatchell,  Dr.  W.  A.,  189-90 
Taylor,  Hudson,  87 
Teian,  Hupeh,  167,  170,  172,  185-6 
205-6,  187-8  I 

Tennyson,  Lord,  quoted,  263  « 

Tientsin  massacre,  94 
Tract  Societies,  105 
Treaty  Ports  opened,  84,  90 
Tribal  and  family  units,  9 

Unquoted  missionaries,  106 

Warren,  G.  G.,  178,  206,207 
Watson,  W.  H.,  184,  206,219 
Williams,  Wells,  86 
Wives  of  missionaries,  107 
Women  workers,  108 
Women’s  work,  126 
“ Worship,”  Chinese  sense  of  the 
word,  13 
Wu,  Empress,  46 
Wu  Ting-fang  quoted,  248 
Wuchang,  Hupeh,  92,  152, 158,  163 
Wuchow,  Kwangsi,  121-2, 142 
Wu-Han  centre,  92 
Wusueh  circuit,  163 

riots,  95,  170,  176-7,  201 

Xavier,  St.  Francis,  59 

Yangtse  Valley  riots,  95 
“ Yellow  Emperor,”  the,  10 
Yin  and  Yang  principles,  7,  50 
Yochow,  Hunan,  202,  203 
Young  China,  250-5  . 

Yung  Cheng,  the  emperor,  hi? 

speech  to  Jesuit  Fathers,  65-6. 
Yungchow,  Hunan,  223-5 


li 

Printed  and  bound  by  Hazell,  Watson  d'  Viney,  Ld.,  London  and  Aylesbury.  I 


